Gen Chemistry: Electronic Structure Of Atom

Lecture 2

ELECTRONIC STRUCTURE
OF ATOMS
GENERAL CHEMISTRY

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OUTLINE
• Definitions

• Development of Electronic structure

• Wave behavior of matter

• Quantum Mechanical Model

• Electronic Configuration

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Gen Chemistry: Electronic Structure Of Atom
Lecture 2

Electronic Structure of
Atom
• Definitions:

– Electronic structure:
• the number of electrons (e - s) of an atom, their
distribution (arrangement) around the atom and
their energies

– Electronic configuration:
• arrangement of electrons in atoms

Electronic Structure of
Atom
• Development:

– Influenced by the development of the

Quantum Theory (Max Planck), which says
that “energy, like matter, is discontinuous”

– The difference between any two allowed

energies of a system also has a specific value,
called a quantum of energy

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Gen Chemistry: Electronic Structure Of Atom
Lecture 2

Wave behavior of matter

• Wave-particle duality
– (Louis de Broglie)
– Small particles of matter may at times display
wave-like properties

• Uncertainty principle
– (Werner Heisenberg)
– There is an inherent uncertainty in the precision
with which the position and momentum of a
particle can be simultaneously specified

Quantum Mechanical
Model
• Quantum mechanics (Erwin Schrödinger)
– Incorporates both the wavelike and particle-like behavior of
the electron

• Electron density
– A way of expressing probability
– Regions where there is high probability of finding the
electron are regions of high electron density

• Orbitals
– An allowed energy state of an electron in the quantum
mechanical model of the atom; used to describe the spatial
distribution of the electron

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Gen Chemistry: Electronic Structure Of Atom
Lecture 2

Quantum Mechanical
Model
1. Principal quantum number (n)
– refers to the energy level of the orbital
– also called principal energy level
– n = 1, 2, 3, ... (positive integral values)
– total e- capacity of a principal energy level = 2(n)2
n=1 e- capacity: 2
n=2 8
n=3 18

– ↑n
• ↑ size of orbital ↑ time of e- away from the
nucleus
• ↑ energy of e- ↓ less tightly bound e- to
nucleus

Quantum Mechanical
Model
2. Azimuthal quantum number (l)
– Defines the shape of the orbital
– Also referred to as second quantum number
or angular momentum quantum number
– Can have integral values from 0 to n-1, for
each value of n
– Designated by the letters s, p, d & f,
corresponding to l values 0, 1, 2, 3 respectively

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Gen Chemistry: Electronic Structure Of Atom
Lecture 2

Electron shell: collection of orbitals

with the same number of n

Subshell: set of orbitals that have the

same n & l values

Figure and table from:

Brown, T.L., LeMay, H.E. Jr., Bursten, B.E., 2015. Chemistry: The Central Science. 13th edition. Prentice Hall: New Jersey

Quantum Mechanical
Model
3. Magnetic quantum number, (ml)
– describes the orientation of the orbital in space
– can have integral values between –l and l,
including zero

4. Spin magnetic quantum number (ms)

– Proposed by George Uhlenbeck and Samuel
Goudsmit
– Two possible values, +1/2 or -1/2, indicating the two
opposite directions in which the electron can spin

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Gen Chemistry: Electronic Structure Of Atom
Lecture 2

Electronic configuration
• Exclusion principle (Wolfgang Pauli)
– no two electrons in an atom can have the same
set of four quantum numbers, n, l, ml, and ms
– Therefore, an orbital can hold a maximum of two
electrons and they must have opposite spins

• Hund’s rule
– For degenerate orbitals (orbitals in the same
principal level), the lowest energy is attained when
the number of electrons having the same spin is
maximized

Electronic configuration
• Exclusion principle (Wolfgang Pauli)
– no two electrons in an atom can have the same
set of four quantum numbers, n, l, ml, and ms
– Therefore, an orbital can hold a maximum of two
electrons and they must have opposite spins

• Hund’s rule
– For degenerate orbitals (orbitals in the same
principal level), the lowest energy is attained when
the number of electrons having the same spin is
maximized

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Gen Chemistry: Electronic Structure Of Atom
Lecture 2

Electronic configuration
• Rules for assigning e- to orbitals:
1. Electrons occupy orbitals in a way that minimizes the
energy of the atom
• e-s occupy the lowest energy orbital first, beginning with 1s
• Each principal energy level, n, can only contain n subshells

2. No two electrons in an atom can have all four

quantum numbers alike
• Maximum number of e- in any orbital is two (2)

3. When orbitals of identical energy (degenerate

orbitals) are available, electrons initially occupy these
orbitals singly

THANK YOU!

END OF DISCUSSION

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