Electron Configuration
Wednesday, April 22, 2026 8:16 AM
Ground-State Configuration
The arrangement of electrons in an atom is its electron configuration.
Atoms with low energy are more stable than atoms with high energy.
An atom is most stable when its electrons are in the lowest possible ene
rgy levels. An atom is most stable in its ground state.
The Aufbau principle states that electrons fill the
lowest-energy orbitals before moving to higher-energy
orbitals.
Basic idea before orbital filling
• Electrons in an atom do not exist at any random energy.
• They occupy specific main energy levels around the
nucleus.
• These main energy levels are identified by the principal
quantum number n = 1, 2, 3, 4, ...
• As n increases, the electron is generally farther from the
nucleus and has higher energy.
Sublevels inside each main energy level
• Each main energy level is divided into smaller parts
called sublevels.
• The sublevels are named: s, p, d, f
• So, a main energy level is not just one single energy state.
• It contains one or more sublevels with slightly different
energies.
Number of sublevels in each main level
• n = 1 → has 1 sublevel → 1s
• n = 2 → has 2 sublevels → 2s, 2p
• n = 3 → has 3 sublevels → 3s, 3p, 3d
• n = 4 → has 4 sublevels → 4s, 4p, 4d, 4f
Orbitals inside each sublevel
• Each sublevel contains one or more orbitals ( ).
• An orbital is a region where there is a high probability of
finding an electron.
Number of orbitals in each sublevel:
• s sublevel → 1 orbital
• p sublevel → 3 orbitals
• d sublevel → 5 orbitals
• f sublevel → 7 orbitals
Maximum number of electrons
• Each orbital can hold a maximum of 2 electrons.
So:
○ s holds 2 electrons
○ p holds 6 electrons
○ d holds 10 electrons
○ f holds 14 electrons
The Pauli Exclusion Principle
The Pauli exclusion principle states that two electrons
can share an orbital only if they spin in opposite directions.
Representing Electrons
We use arrows in a box to represent electrons in an
orbital. Each arrow shows the electron spinning in a
different direction.
Two electrons can share an orbital only if they
have opposite spins.
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Hund’s Rule
Electrons have negative charges and repel each other. To reduce
repulsion, electrons stay as far apart as possible.
Hund’s rule states that electrons with the same spin will first fill
different orbitals of the same energy. Only after each orbital has one
electron does it pair up with an electron of the opposite spin.
Example: A student wrote the electron configuration for
nitrogen (7 electrons). Look at the image. Is the student’s
configuration correct? Select the option that best explains
why or why not.
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• Magnesium
Atomic number: 12
Mass number: 24
• Argon
Atomic number: 18
Mass number: 40
• Calcium
Atomic number: 20
Mass number: 40
• Scandium
Atomic number: 21
Mass number: 45
• Iron
Atomic number: 26
Mass number: 56
• Zinc
Atomic number: 30
Mass number: 65
• Bromine
Atomic number: 35
Mass number: 80
• Krypton
Atomic number: 36
Mass number: 84
• Silver
Atomic number: 47
Mass number: 108
• Cerium
Atomic number: 58
Mass number: 140
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Electron Configuration Exceptions
Chromium (Cr) and copper (Cu) do not follow the Aufbau
principle. An electron moves into the 3d orbital before the
4s orbital is full. This makes the atom more stable.
Valence electrons are the outermost electrons in an atom. To
find them, look at the highest principal energy level in the
atom’s electron configuration. Electrons in the s and p orbitals
of this level are the valence electrons.
Example
Sulfur’s electron configuration shows 2 electrons in the 3s
orbital and 4 electrons in the 3p orbitals. So, sulfur has 6
valence electrons.
Valence electrons help form chemical bonds. Chemists
use electron-dot structures to show valence electrons quickly.
An electron-dot structure shows the element's symbol with
valence electrons as dots around it.
Drawing Electron-Dot Structures
1. Draw the chemical symbol for the element.
2. Add one dot at a time to each side of the symbol (top, right,
bottom, left).
3. Then, add a second dot to each side to make pairs.
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