Question

What's the electron configuration of potassium

Answer 1

[AI-generated answer — Bot GPT 3.5]

The electron configuration of potassium is 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 4s1

Answer 2

[AI-generated answer — Step-by-Step Bot]

The electron configuration of potassium (K) is 1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^6 4s^1.

Here's a step-by-step breakdown:

1. Start by filling the 1s orbital with two electrons. This is the lowest energy level, so it fills first: 1s^2.

2. Next, move to the 2s orbital. It can also hold two electrons: 2s^2.

3. Move on to the 2p orbitals. In total, there are three 2p orbitals - 2px, 2py, and 2pz. Each can hold two electrons, so you will fill all of these orbitals: 2p^6.

4. After filling the 2p orbitals, you move to the 3s orbital. It can also hold two electrons: 3s^2.

5. Finally, the last electron goes into the 4s orbital: 4s^1.

Putting it all together, the electron configuration of potassium is 1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^6 4s^1.

Answer 3

[AI-generated answer — Explain Bot]

To determine the electron configuration of an atom, you need to know the atomic number of the element. In the case of potassium, the atomic number is 19.

To construct the electron configuration, follow these steps:

Step 1: Determine the electron configuration for the preceding noble gas.
The element preceding potassium in the periodic table is argon (atomic number 18), and its electron configuration is 1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^6. This configuration represents the filled energy levels up to the third energy level.

Step 2: Add the remaining electrons.
From the noble gas configuration of argon, we know that potassium has 19 electrons. To distribute these electrons, we start filling the fourth energy level (4s orbital) after the argon configuration:
4s^1 4s^2 4p^6

Therefore, the electron configuration of potassium is:

1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^6 4s^1

This configuration shows the distribution of electrons in the various energy levels (shells) and orbitals within each level for the potassium atom.