Question

Which type of orbital will be occupied by the electrons of highest energy for the Si^4+ ground-state ion? 1. 2s 2. 3p 3. 4s 4. 4d 5. 2p 6. 5s 7. 3d 8. 4p 9. 5p 10. 6s

Answer 1

Answer: Option (5) is the correct answer.

Explanation:

It is known that the ground state electronic configuration of silicon is $[Ne]3s^{2}3p^{2}$.

And, we know that when an atom tends to gain an electron then it acquires a negative charge and when an atom tends to lose an electron then it acquires a positive charge.

As $Si^{4+}$ has a +4 charge which means that it has lost 4 electrons. Hence, the electronic configuration of $Si^{4+}$ is $1s^{2}2s^{2}2p^{6}$.

According to the Aufbau principle, in the ground state of an atom or ion the electrons fill atomic orbitals of the lowest energy levels first, before filling the higher energy levels.

As 2p orbital is filled after the filling of 2s orbital.

Therefore, we can conclude that 2p orbital will be occupied by the electrons of highest energy for the $Si^{4+}$ ground-state ion.