Question

Sulfur has an atomic number of 16 what is the ground-state electron configuration of sulfur​

Answer 1

Answer:

1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p4

Explanation:

For ground state atoms you need to fill the orbitals in order.

Orbital s has max 2 electrons

Orbital p has max 6 electrons

Level 1 only has s orbital

Level 2 has s and p orbitals

Level 3 has s, p and d orbitals

You fill them in order until you reach 16 electrons:

1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p4

Answer 2

Answer: $1s^22s^22p^63s^23p^4$

Explanation:

Electronic configuration represents the total number of electrons that a neutral element contains. We add all the superscripts to know the number of electrons in an atom.

The electrons are filled according to Afbau's rule in order of increasing energies. Sulphur with atomic number of 16 will have 16 electrons and thus the ground state electronic configuration is:

$S:16:1s^22s^22p^63s^23p^4$