Ch.

5: Electrons
in the Atom
Development of atomic models
Rutherfords Nuclear Atom Model
Rutherfords atomic model could not explain the
chemical properties of elements
Why do objects change color when heated?
Example: heating and iron horseshoe
The observed behavior could only be explained if the
atoms gave off light in specific amounts of energy
Bohrs Model
Bohr proposed that an electron is found
in specific circular paths, or orbits,
around the nucleus
Each possible electron orbit in Bohrs
model has a fixed energy.
The fixed energies an electron can have are
called energy levels
A quantum of energy is the amount of
energy required to move an electron from
one energy level to another
 Like the rungs of the strange
ladder, the energy levels in
an atom are not equally
spaced.

The higher the energy level

occupied by an electron, the
less energy it takes to move
from that energy level to the
next higher energy level.
Quantum Mechanical Model
Erwin Schrdinger- Devised and solved a mathematical equation
describing the behavior of the electron in a hydrogen atom

The modern description of the electrons in atoms, the quantum

mechanical model, comes from the mathematical solutions to the
Schrdinger equation.
Quantum Mechanical Model
The quantum mechanical model determines the allowed energies an
electron can have and how likely it is to find the electron in various
locations around the nucleus.

Limits electrons to certain energy levels

Does not attempt to predict the path of the electron
Describing the location of an electron
Atomic Orbital:
3D region around the nucleus that describes the electrons probable location
Quantum numbers:
Describes the location of the electron in 4 categories
Each category gets more specific
Energy Levels:
Principle quantum number (n)
Can be values 1-7
Defines the size
As n increases, the energy level gets larger
Energy Sublevel
Each energy level has n number of
sublevels ( Level 1 has 1 sublevel)
The sublevels have labels
1st on in each level s
2ndp
3rdd
4thf
 Atomic Orbitals
Atomic Orbital: region of space in which there is a
high probability of finding an electron
Each energy level has n2 number of atomic orbitals
Each energy sublevel corresponds to an orbital of a
different shape, which describes where the electron
is likely to be found.
Orbitals
Each sublevel has a fixed number of orbitals
s1 orbital
p3 orbitals
d5 orbitals
f7 orbitals
 Different atomic orbitals are denoted by letters. The s orbitals
are spherical, and p orbitals are dumbbell-shaped.
 Four of the five d orbitals have the same shape but
different orientations in space.
 The numbers and kinds of atomic orbitals depend
on the energy sublevel.
Atomic Spins
Each orbital can hold a maximum of 2 electron
Each energy level has 2n2 number of electrons
The two electrons travel with opposite spins
 The number of electrons
allowed in each of the
first four energy levels
are shown here.
Electron Configuration
The arrangement of the electrons in an atom
The lowest energy is the most stable
There are 3 main rules for writing the electron configurations of
elements
 Aufbau Principle
1) Aufbau Principle
Each electron occupies the lowest
energy orbit
Each sublevel has a different energy
state
e- within an energy level fill in the sub
level orders, p, d, then f
The energy levels overlap so a guideline
is needed to establish sublevel order

Diagonal Rule: Sets the order of filling

the sublevels
 Pauli Exclusion Principle/Hunds Rule
2) Pauli Exclusion Principle
An atomic orbital contains a maximum of two electrons
The two electrons will travel with opposite spins
The direction of the spin will be represented
Each arrow represents an electron (Together is one pair of electrons)

3) Hunds Rule
e- will individually occupy equal energy orbitals before forming
a pair
All orbitals of a sublevel are of equal energy
Want the number of electrons with the same spin direction as
large as possible
 Three Methods of Notation
1) Orbital Notation: shows every electron with an
arrow

Example: O-16 (8e-)

Practice Orbital Notation
Argon

Sulfur
Three Methods of Notation
2) Electron Configuration: shows the total number of
electrons in each sublevel as a superscript

Example: Argon ( 18 e-)

1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6

Three Methods of Notation
3) Electron Dot (Lewis Dot): shows each outer level
electron as a dot
**Maximum number of 8 dots**
Exceptions to Electron Configuration
Some electron configurations for some elements
differ from those assigned using the aufbau principle.
Because the half-filled sublevels are not as stable as filled
sublevel, but they are more stable than other
configurations

Examples: Copper, Chromium, Silver, Molybdenum, &

Gold
Valence Electrons
Valence Electrons: Electrons in the highest number energy
level
Found in the highest number s and p sublevels
The electrons used in electron dot notation

Very Important Concept in Chemistry:

- Atoms in the same group (column) on the periodic table have
similar chemical properties because they have the same number of
valence electrons
 Notice that the electron dot structures repeat as
you move down the table:

1A: 1 dot 5A: 5 dots

2A: 2 dots 6A: 6 dots
3A: 3 dots 7A: 7 dots
4A: 4 dots 8A: 8 dots
**He: 2 dots

**Middle Section has 1-

2 VE
 Levels/Sublevels on Periodic Table

S block- first 2 columns

(and He)
D block- next 10 columns
P block- next 6 columns
F block- 14 columns below
table
Extended Periodic Table
Noble Gas Notation:
Noble Gas Notation: a shorter version of electron configuration
Since the inner level electron configuration doesnt change the noble gas is
used as a shortcut
Find the noble gas before it (column 8). Write the noble gas in bracket, and
then fill in the remaining configuration

Example: Al - 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p1

Same

Ne- 1s2 2s2 2p6

Shorter Version: Al- [Ne] 3s2 3p1

Noble Gas Notation Practice
Antimony:

Calcium: [Ne] 3s2 3p6 4s2 -- fix it