Final answer:
The energy required to ionize a hydrogen atom with an electron in the n = 3 level is 1.51 eV.
Step-by-step explanation:
To calculate the energy required to ionize a hydrogen atom with an electron in the n = 3 level, we can use the energy formula for hydrogen atom levels, En = -13.6 eV/n2. For n = 3, the energy level is E3 = -13.6 eV/32 which equals -1.51 eV. As the total energy for a free electron is 0 eV, the energy required to ionize the atom is the difference between its current energy state and 0 eV. Therefore, we first need to find the absolute value of the electron's bound state energy and then provide it that amount of energy to set it free or ionize the atom. The energy needed for ionization from the n = 3 level is thus 1.51 eV.