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In chemistry and atomic physics, an electron shell may be thought of as an orbit that electrons follow around an atom's nucleus.The closest shell to the nucleus is called the "1 shell" (also called the "K shell"), followed by the "2 shell" (or "L shell"), then the "3 shell" (or "M shell"), and so on further and further from the nucleus.
The maximum number of electrons in any shell is 2n 2, where n is the principal quantum number. The maximum number of electrons in a subshell is equal to 2(2 l + 1), where the azimuthal quantum number l is equal to 0, 1, 2, and 3 for s, p, d, and f subshells, so that the maximum numbers of electrons are 2, 6, 10, and 14 respectively.
Each shell can contain only a fixed number of electrons: The first shell can hold up to two electrons, the second shell can hold up to eight (2 + 6) electrons, the third shell can hold up to 18 (2 + 6 + 10) and so on. The general formula is that the nth shell can in principle hold up to 2n 2 electrons. [1]
In 1919, the American chemist Irving Langmuir elaborated on the Lewis's static model of the atom and suggested that all electrons were distributed in successive "concentric (nearly) spherical shells, all of equal thickness". [55] In turn, he divided the shells into a number of cells each of which contained one pair of electrons.
In each term of an electron configuration, n is the positive integer that precedes each orbital letter (helium's electron configuration is 1s 2, therefore n = 1, and the orbital contains two electrons). An atom's nth electron shell can accommodate 2n 2 electrons. For example, the first shell can accommodate two electrons, the second shell eight ...
The number of electrons in an electrically neutral atom increases with the atomic number. The electrons in the outermost shell, or valence electrons, tend to be responsible for an element's chemical behavior. Elements that contain the same number of valence electrons can be grouped together and display similar chemical properties.
The number of valence electrons of an element can be determined by the periodic table group (vertical column) in which the element is categorized. In groups 1–12, the group number matches the number of valence electrons; in groups 13–18, the units digit of the group number matches the number of valence electrons. (Helium is the sole ...
The number of electrons in each element's electron shells, particularly the outermost valence shell, is the primary factor in determining its chemical bonding behavior. Hence, it is the atomic number alone that determines the chemical properties of an element; and it is for this reason that an element can be defined as consisting of any mixture ...