Questions: Question 6 .a of 6 Examine the orbital diagram for the ground state electron configuration of sulfur. Choose the correct orbital diagram for the ground state electron configuration of sulfur.

Solution Steps

Sulfur has an atomic number of 16, which means it has 16 electrons in its ground state.

The electron configuration for sulfur can be determined by filling the orbitals in order of increasing energy. The order is as follows: \(1s\), \(2s\), \(2p\), \(3s\), \(3p\).

• \(1s^2\): 2 electrons
• \(2s^2\): 2 electrons
• \(2p^6\): 6 electrons
• \(3s^2\): 2 electrons
• \(3p^4\): 4 electrons

Thus, the electron configuration for sulfur is \(1s^2 \, 2s^2 \, 2p^6 \, 3s^2 \, 3p^4\).

The orbital diagram represents the distribution of electrons in the orbitals. Each orbital can hold a maximum of 2 electrons with opposite spins.

• \(1s\): \(\uparrow\downarrow\)
• \(2s\): \(\uparrow\downarrow\)
• \(2p\): \(\uparrow\downarrow \, \uparrow\downarrow \, \uparrow\downarrow\)
• \(3s\): \(\uparrow\downarrow\)
• \(3p\): \(\uparrow\downarrow \, \uparrow \, \uparrow\)

Final Answer