To determine the correct electron configuration for boron, we need to consider its atomic number and the order in which electrons fill the atomic orbitals.
1. Boron has an atomic number of 5, which means it has 5 electrons.
2. Electrons fill orbitals in a specific order following the Aufbau principle, which states that electrons occupy the lowest energy orbitals first. The order is:
- 1s
- 2s
- 2p
- 3s
- and so on.
3. We start filling the orbitals for boron:
- The 1s orbital is filled first and holds 2 electrons: [tex]\(1s^2\)[/tex].
- The 2s orbital is filled next and holds 2 electrons: [tex]\(2s^2\)[/tex].
- Next, the remaining electron goes into the 2p orbital.
Therefore, the electron configuration for boron is:
[tex]\[ 1s^2 2s^2 2p^1 \][/tex]
Given the options provided:
- [tex]\(1s^2 2s^3\)[/tex]: Incorrect, the 2s orbital can only hold 2 electrons.
- [tex]\(1s^2 2s^2 3s^1\)[/tex]: Incorrect, electrons fill the 2p orbital before the 3s orbital.
- [tex]\(1s^1 2s^2 2p^2\)[/tex]: Incorrect, the 1s orbital should hold 2 electrons.
- [tex]\(1s^2 2s^2 2p^1\)[/tex]: Correct.
The correct electron configuration for boron is [tex]\(1s^2 2s^2 2p^1\)[/tex].
