Question

The modern view of an electron orbital in an atom can best be described as

Answer 1

Answer:

An orbital is a region in space where there is a high probability of finding an electron.

Explanation:

The orbital is a concept that developed in quantum mechanics. Recall that Neils Bohr postulated that the electron occupied stationary states which he called energy levels. Electrons emit radiation when the move from a higher to a lower energy level. Similarly, energy is absorbed by an electron to move from a lower to a higher orbit.

This idea was upturned by the Heisenberg uncertainty principle. This principle state that the momentum and position of a particle can not be simultaneously measured with precision.

Instead of defining a 'fixed position' for the electron, we define a region in space where there is a possibility of finding an electron with a certain amount of energy. This orbital is identified by a set of quantum numbers.