Answer:
The ground state electron configuration of a Ca (calcium) atom is:
1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 4s²
Step-by-step explanation:
To determine the electron configuration, we follow the Aufbau principle, which states that electrons fill the lowest energy orbitals first.
Here's the breakdown of each energy level and the number of electrons in each orbital:
1s²: This represents the 1s orbital, which can hold up to 2 electrons.
2s²: This represents the 2s orbital, which can also hold up to 2 electrons.
2p⁶: This represents the 2p orbitals, which can hold a total of 6 electrons. In the case of calcium, all 3 2p orbitals are filled with 2 electrons each.
3s²: This represents the 3s orbital, which can hold up to 2 electrons.
3p⁶: This represents the 3p orbitals, which can hold a total of 6 electrons. In the case of calcium, all 3 3p orbitals are filled with 2 electrons each.
4s²: This represents the 4s orbital, which can hold up to 2 electrons. In the case of calcium, the 4s orbital is also filled with 2 electrons.
In total, a calcium atom has 20 electrons, and the ground state electron configuration represents the arrangement of these electrons in the atom's energy levels and orbitals.