What is the electron configuration of [tex]Ca^{2+}[/tex]?
Answer (3)
Ca2 ; Z=20
1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 4s²
The electron configuration for a Ca2+ cation is 1s²2s²2p63s²3p6, which reflects the removal of the two valence electrons from the 4s orbital, resulting in a configuration isoelectronic with argon.
The electron configuration of neutral calcium (Ca) is 1s²2s²2p63s²3p64s². When forming a Ca2+ cation, calcium loses both of its valence electrons from the 4s orbital. Therefore, the electron configuration for a Ca2+ cation becomes 1s²2s²2p63s²3p6, which is isoelectronic with the noble gas argon (Ar). This reflects that Ca2+ has achieved a stable noble gas electron configuration by shedding the two electrons from its outermost shell.
The electron configuration of C a 2 + is simply [ A r ] , which indicates that it has achieved a stable noble gas configuration by losing two electrons from the neutral calcium configuration. This reflects the loss of the outermost electrons that are found in the 4 s orbital. The resulting configuration shows that C a 2 + now has the same electron configuration as argon.
;
