Prepared by Sir Arbaz Khan Chemistry
Chapter # 2 Atomic Structure MCQs
1. What does it mean for orbitals in a subshell to be “degenerate”?
a) They all have unique energies.
b) They have different orientations.
c) They all have the same energy.
d) They can hold only one electron each.
2. Which statement correctly describes the relative charges of protons, neutrons, and
electrons?
a) Protons are positive, neutrons are negative, electrons are neutral.
b) Neutrons are positive, protons are neutral, electrons are negative.
c) Protons are positive, neutrons are neutral, electrons are negative.
d) Protons and electrons are neutral while neutrons are positive.
3. In terms of relative masses, which of the following is true?
a) Protons and neutrons have nearly the same mass, which is a little heavier than electrons.
b) Electrons are almost as heavy as protons and neutrons.
c) Protons and neutrons are approximately 1836 times heavier than electrons.
d) Protons are significantly heavier than neutrons.
4. What does the atomic number represent?
a) Twice the number of neutrons.
b) The total number of nucleons.
c) The number of protons in an atom.
d) The number of electron shells.
5. Mass number and nucleon number refer to the same concept. What do they represent?
a) The total number of electrons in a neutral atom.
b) The total number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus.
c) The atomic weight of an element.
d) The number of orbitals in the outer shell.
6. When beams of protons, neutrons, and electrons moving at the same velocity are
passed through an electric field, what is observed?
a) All beams are deflected the same way.
b) Protons are deflected in one direction, electrons in the opposite, while neutrons
continue straight.
c) Both protons and neutrons are deflected, but electrons remain undeflected.
d) Only electrons are deflected; protons and neutrons are unaffected.
7. An atom has an atomic number of 11 and a mass number of 23. How many neutrons
does it contain?
a) 11
b) 12
c) 23
d) 34
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8. In the formation of a positive ion (cation), what happens to the electrons compared to
the neutral atom?
a) Electrons are added to the atom.
b) Electrons are removed from the atom.
c) The number of electrons remains the same.
d) Protons are removed instead of electrons.
9. What is the trend in atomic radius as you move across a period in the periodic table?
a) Atomic radius increases.
b) Atomic radius remains constant.
c) Atomic radius decreases.
d) Atomic radius first increases then decreases.
10. How does the ionic radius change as you move down a group in the periodic table?
a) Ionic radius decreases.
b) Ionic radius remains constant.
c) Ionic radius increases.
d) Ionic radius first decreases then increases.
11. Which of the following represents a simple electronic configuration notation for the
first two shells?
a) 1, 3
b) 2, 6
c) 2, 8
d) 1, 4, 7
12. Which of the following is the correct electron configuration (using subshell notation)
for sodium (Na, atomic number 11)?
a) 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s²
b) 1s² 2s² 2p⁵ 3s²
c) 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3p¹
d) 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s¹
13. The chemical properties of an element are primarily determined by which electrons?
a) Core electrons
b) Inner-shell electrons
c) Valence electrons
d) Electrons in completely filled subshells
14. What does the principal quantum number (n) indicate?
a) The energy level or shell an electron occupies.
b) The shape of the orbital.
c) The spin of the electron.
d) The number of orbitals in a subshell.
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15. Which quantum number determines the shape of an orbital?
a) Principal quantum number (n)
b) Azimuthal (angular momentum) quantum number (l)
c) Magnetic quantum number (mₗ)
d) Spin quantum number (s)
16. How many orbitals are in a p subshell?
a) 1
b) 2
c) 3
d) 4
17. What is the maximum number of electrons that can occupy an s subshell?
a) 1
b) 2
c) 3
d) 4
18. What is the maximum number of electrons that a d subshell can hold?
a) 8
b) 10
c) 12
d) 14
19. The aufbau principle states that electrons fill orbitals in which order?
a) Random order
b) From lower to higher energy subshells
c) From higher to lower energy subshells
d) In alphabetical order of subshell labels
20. Which of the following principles asserts that no two electrons in an atom can have
the same set of four quantum numbers?
a) Hund’s rule
b) Pauli exclusion principle
c) Aufbau principle
d) Orbital filling principle
21. According to Hund’s rule, how do electrons populate degenerate orbitals?
a) They pair in one orbital before occupying others.
b) They occupy each orbital singly before any pairing occurs.
c) They fill the orbital with the highest energy first.
d) They only fill the orbitals that already contain an electron.
22. Which order correctly reflects the increasing energy of subshells?
a) 3p < 3d < 4s
b) 3d < 4s < 4p
c) 4s < 3d < 4p
d) 4p < 3d < 4s
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23. In electron configuration notation, what does the superscript number indicate?
a) The orbital’s energy
b) The number of orbitals present
c) The principal quantum number
d) The number of electrons in that subshell
24. Why do electrons arrange themselves into specific orbitals as described by quantum
numbers?
a) Randomly due to chance.
b) Because the arrangement minimizes the overall energy while balancing electron–
electron repulsion.
c) To maximize the atomic mass.
d) To align with the nucleus’s shape.
25. Inter-electron repulsion in an atom primarily causes which of the following?
a) A uniform energy for all electrons
b) No observable effect on electron configuration
c) Differences in energy between orbitals of the same subshell.
d) The electrons to all pair immediately.
26. Which element is known for having a half-filled p subshell, contributing to its relative
stability?
a) Nitrogen (with a p³ configuration)
b) Oxygen (with a p⁴ configuration)
c) Carbon (with a p² configuration)
d) Neon (with a p⁶ configuration)
27. Why does ionization energy generally increase across a period?
a) Because of an increase in electron shielding.
b) Due to increased atomic radius.
c) Because of an increasing effective nuclear charge with little additional shielding.
d) Because the electrons are further from the nucleus.
28. What is the typical trend in successive ionization energies for a given element?
a) They remain constant.
b) They increase as each additional electron is removed.
c) They decrease with each removal.
d) They decrease then suddenly increase.
29. Which factor does NOT significantly influence an atom’s ionization energy?
a) Effective nuclear charge
b) Atomic/ionic radius
c) Shielding by inner electrons
d) Number of neutrons
30. Spin-pair repulsion in an orbital will most likely result in:
a) Increased orbital energy
b) A slight lowering of ionization energy due to electron repulsion effects
c) An increase in effective nuclear charge
d) No impact on the electron configuration
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31. How can successive ionization energy measurements be used regarding an element?
a) To determine its color
b) To deduce its relative atomic mass
c) To infer its electronic configuration and its placement on the periodic table.
d) To calculate its density.
32. A mass spectrometer can be used to determine which of the following properties of an
element?
a) Its relative atomic mass and isotopic composition.
b) Its ionization energies.
c) The number of valence electrons only.
d) The number of energy levels
33. Non-integer relative atomic masses are typically calculated by:
a) Taking the weighted average of the masses of the isotopes based on their abundances.
b) Multiplying the proton number by the neutron number.
c) Adding extra mass for electron contributions.
d) Averaging the mass numbers of neighboring elements.
34. What is ionization energy?
a) The energy released when an electron is added to an atom.
b) The energy required to remove an electron from a gaseous atom or ion.
c) The energy needed to fuse two nuclei.
d) The energy difference between the nucleus and the electron cloud.
35. A free radical is best described as a species that contains:
a) A complete octet.
b) One or more unpaired electrons.
c) Only paired electrons in all orbitals.
d) An extra proton.
36. When writing the electron configuration for a cation, which electrons are removed
first?
a) The electrons in the core orbitals.
b) Electrons from the subshell with the lowest principal quantum number.
c) Electrons from the highest energy orbital (typically the outermost orbital).
d) Electrons are not removed; only protons are subtracted.
37. Which shape best describes an s orbital?
a) Dumbbell-shaped
b) Spherical
c) Cloverleaf
d) Conical
38. The typical shape of a p orbital is:
a) Spherical
b) Dumbbell-shaped
c) Rectangular
d) Circular
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39. What is the common shape of d orbitals?
a) Spherical
b) Dumbbell-shaped
c) Cloverleaf-shaped
d) Linear
40. Why are electronic configurations critical in the development of new materials for
electronic devices?
a) They determine only the color of the material.
b) They have no influence on device performance.
c) They determine the electrical and optical properties of the material.
d) They solely influence the melting point.
41. Which rule specifically states that electrons should occupy degenerate orbitals singly
before pairing up?
a) Pauli exclusion principle
b) Hund’s rule
c) Aufbau principle
d) The exclusion rule
42. The term “valence electrons” refers to:
a) Electrons in the nucleus.
b) Electrons in the outermost shell available for bonding.
c) Electrons that are not involved in bonding.
d) Core electrons.
43. What is meant by the term “nucleon”?
a) A proton and an electron
b) An electron and a neutron
c) A proton or a neutron (particles that make up the nucleus).
d) A combination of an electron and a positron
44. Which factor most strongly influences the effective nuclear charge experienced by an
electron?
a) The number of neutrons
b) The orbital shape
c) The number of electron shells
d) The number of protons relative to shielding electrons.
45. Down a group in the periodic table, the increase in atomic radius is primarily due to:
a) An increase in effective nuclear charge
b) The addition of extra electron shells (energy levels).
c) A decrease in the number of protons
d) Reduced electron–electron repulsion
46. A dramatic increase in successive ionization energies is typically observed when:
a) Electrons are removed from similar energy levels.
b) The ion becomes more stable.
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c) An electron is removed from a stable, inner electron configuration (core electrons).
d) The shielding effect increases.
47. One key characteristic of a free radical is:
a) A completely filled outer shell.
b) An odd number of electrons that results in one or more unpaired electrons.
c) Extra neutrons in the nucleus.
d) A high ionization energy due to paired electrons.
48. How is an element’s electronic configuration determined from its position in the
periodic table?
a) By considering the element’s period (energy level) and group (valence electron
configuration).
b) By only its atomic mass.
c) Randomly from neighboring elements’ configurations.
d) Through experimental mass spectrometry.
49. Which subshell has the highest number of orbitals?
a) s subshell (1 orbital)
b) p subshell (3 orbitals)
c) d subshell (5 orbitals)
d) f subshell (7 orbitals)
50. What is the maximum number of electrons that can occupy an f subshell?
a) 12
b) 14
c) 16
d) 14 (7 orbitals × 2 electrons per orbital)
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