Question

For a ground state electron configuration, what is the next electron orbital to fill after the following orbitals have electrons in them?

1s 2s 2p 3s 3p 4s

Answer 1

The next electron orbital to fill after the 1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p, and 4s orbitals is the 3d orbital.

Step-by-step explanation:

After the 4s orbital is filled, according to the Aufbau principle which describes the order in which orbitals are filled, the next electron orbital to fill is the 3d orbital. Orbitals are filled in order of increasing energy: 1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p, 4s, and then 3d. So, when we continue with the filling process for a ground state electron configuration after 1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p, and 4s have been filled, electrons will go into the 3d sublevel, which can hold up to 10 electrons.