Final answer:
The ion that is most likely to form from the electronic configuration 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s¹ is Na⁺, matching the configuration of a sodium atom that has lost one electron to achieve stability. Therefore, option a. Na⁺ is the correct answer.
Step-by-step explanation:
The ion that is most likely to form with the electron configuration 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s¹ is Na⁺. This is because the electronic configuration provided corresponds to the element sodium (Na), which has 11 electrons. Sodium is in the alkali metal family and typically loses one electron to attain a noble gas configuration, resulting in the stable Na⁺ cation with a configuration of 1s² 2s² 2p⁶, which is isoelectronic with neon (Ne).
The ion that is most likely to form in the given electron configuration is Na+ (sodium ion).
Sodium (Na) has an electron configuration of 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s¹. It forms a cation by losing one electron, resulting in an ion with the configuration 1s² 2s² 2p⁶.
Therefore, option a. Na⁺ is the correct answer.