Question

How many different principal quantum numbers can be found in the ground-state electron configuration of nickel?A) 2.B) 3.C) 4.D) 5.E) 6.

Answer 1

Answer:

C) 4.

Explanation:

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In this case, since the electron configuration of nickel at its ground-state, considering 28 as its atomic number and the number of electrons it has in one atom, is:

$Ni^{28}:1s^2,2s^2,2p^6,3s^2,3p^6,4s^2,3d^8$

We can see it has four energy levels, 1, 2, 3 and 4, which are related to the following principal quantum number, that describes the energy of an electron in the atom and its most probable distance with respect to the nucleus.

Therefore, nickel has C) 4 different principal quantum numbers.

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