Electron Structure Flashcards
Define the term orbital
An atomic orbital is a region within an atom, around the nucleus, that can hold up to two electrons with opposite spins
How many electrons can occupy the first shell?
2
How many electrons can occupy the second shell?
8
How many electrons can occupy the third shell?
18
How many electrons can occupy the fourth shell?
32
What are electrons arranged into within shells?
Sub-shells
What is the name of the first four sub-shells?
s,p,d,f
How many electrons can occupy: an s, a p, a d and an f subshell
s - 2
p - 6
d - 10
f - 14
Using the Aufbau principle what is the electronic configuration for Li(3), O(8) and Mg(12)?
Li - 1s2 2s1
O - 1s2 2s2 2p3
Mg - 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2
What must you remember when drawing an ‘electrons in boxes’ diagram to show electronic configuration?
Before filling a new orbital, electrons prefer to be alone in an orbital until there is no free orbitals in the specific sub-shell. This means there may be electrons alone in atomic orbitals in the ‘box’
Using a periodic table, how is it possible to determine which sub-shell the outermost electron is in, in different elements? Find this for Sr, Ga and W
The name of the block of elements is relative to which sub-shell you can find the outermost electron.
Sr - s-block
Ga - p-block
W - d-block
Deduce the number of electrons in the third shell of calcium
8
How many complete orbitals are there in phosphorous?
6
How many P electrons are there in sulfur?
10
Deduce the number of full orbitals in the 4th shell of bromine
3
