The ground state electron configuration for magnesium (Mg) is 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2.
Explanation: Magnesium has an atomic number of 12, which means it has 12 electrons. The electron configuration describes how these electrons are distributed in the atomic orbitals. We fill the orbitals in the following order:
- 1s2: The first two electrons fill the 1s orbital.
- 2s2: The next two electrons fill the 2s orbital.
- 2p6: The next six electrons fill the 2p orbital.
- 3s2: Finally, the last two electrons go into the 3s orbital.
Each of these orbitals has a specific capacity for electrons, and they are filled according to the Aufbau principle, which states that electrons occupy the lowest-energy orbitals first. In this case, magnesium’s electron configuration shows that it has two electrons in the outermost shell (the 3s subshell), which is characteristic of its chemical behavior.