Explanation:
Atomic number of magnesium is 12 and its electronic configuration is
.
And, atomic number of fluorine is 9 and its electronic configuration is
.
Therefore, magnesium needs to attain stability by losing two valence electrons and fluorine needs to attain stability by gaining one electron.
Hence, two fluorine atoms will chemically combine with one atom of magnesium to acquire stability.
Therefore, magnesium will donate its valence electron to each fluorine atom. This will form an ionic compound magnesium fluoride (
).
Thus, we can conclude that magnesium and fluorine atoms most likely form an ionic bond.