Question

which of the following orbital diagrams represent the ground state configuration for an isolated neutral chlorine atom in shorthand form?

Explanation:

Step1: Recall chlorine's atomic number

Chlorine has an atomic number of 17, so it has 17 electrons.

Step2: Apply electron - filling rules

Electrons fill orbitals in the order 1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p. The 1s orbital can hold 2 electrons, 2s can hold 2 electrons, 2p can hold 6 electrons, 3s can hold 2 electrons, and 3p can hold up to 6 electrons.

Step3: Analyze the correct configuration

The electron - configuration of chlorine is $1s^{2}2s^{2}2p^{6}3s^{2}3p^{5}$. In orbital - diagram form, the 1s, 2s, 2p, and 3s orbitals are fully filled (pairs of electrons with opposite spins), and the 3p sub - shell has 5 electrons with one orbital having a single electron (Hund's rule).

Answer:

The second option (showing 1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, and 3p orbitals with the correct number of electrons as described above) is the correct ground - state configuration for an isolated neutral chlorine atom in shorthand form.