The general electron configuration for atoms of all elements in Group 5A is A) ns²^np⁶. B) ns²^np⁵. C) ns²^np⁴. D) ns²^np³. E) ns²^np¹.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The general electron configuration for atoms in Group 5A is ns2np3. Writing out the electron configuration of a representative element in this group, nitrogen (N), gives 1s2 2s2 2p3. Using this as a reference, we can generalize to the following: 
ns2S1U1P0np3S1U1P0 for the first half of the group (elements with higher atomic numbers) and 
ns2S1U1P1np3S1U1P0 for the second half of the group (elements with lower atomic numbers). 
This gives the general electron configuration as nsS1U1P12S1S1P0S1U1P1npS1S1P0S1U1P13S1S1P0, which matches choice D.

The General Electron Configuration for Atoms of All Elements in Group