Chapter 4: Atomic Structure and Periodic Trends

 Atoms
o Nucleus contains protons (+1) and neutrons (0) (nucleons); outside nucleus are electrons (-1)
o In neutral atoms, # electrons = # protons
o Atomic Number (Z): # of protons (indicates which element, i.e. 4Be)
o Mass Number (A): # of protons + # of neutrons
Mass Number ( A )
o Notation: Atomic Number (Z) Element X
o Proton and neutron each have one atomic mass unit (1 amu = 1.66 x 10-27 kg), electron almost 0
 Thus, almost all mass of atom comes from nucleus (protons and neutrons)
 Although mass comes from nucleus, nucleus occupies smallest volume in an atom
 Isotopes
o Isotopes: same element but with differing # of neutrons
 Atomic Weight
o Atomic Weight: weighted average of each isotope
 Ions
o Ion: when a neutral atom gains/loses electrons, becoming charged
o Anion (negatively charged) vs. Cation (positively charged)
 Nuclear Stability and Radioactivity
o Strong Nuclear Force: holds protons and neutrons in nucleus
o Radioactive: unstable nuclei (too many protons or neutrons)
o Radioactive Decay: alters # and ratio of protons and neutrons, lowering energy  more stable
o Parent: original nucleus that undergoes radioactive decay
o Daughter: resulting and more stable nucleus
4 4
o Alpha Decay (α): too many protons and neutrons. Nucleus releases alpha particle ( 2∝ aka 2He ),
a particle made up of 2 protons and 2 neutrons
 Mass # 4 lower, atomic # 2 lower
o Beta- Decay (β-): too many neutrons. Neutron converts to proton + electron. Nucleus then
0
releases a β- particle (−1 β ¿ , a particle made up of the 1 electron
 Mass # same, atomic # 1 higher
 Most common type of beta decay (when MCAT mentions “beta decay”)
o Beta+ Decay (β+): too few neutrons. Proton converts to neutron + positron. Nucleus then releases
0
a β+ particle (+1 β ¿ , a particle made up of the 1 positron
 Mass # same, atomic # 1 lower
 Positron: anti-electron produced from radioactive decay. Has same mass, spin, but
opposite charge of electron. It is not a proton, and is not found in the nucleus
o Electron Capture: too few neutrons. Takes electron from n=1 shell, combines proton  neutron
 Mass # same, atomic # 1 lower
 Is also a form of beta decay (thus 3 beta decays in total: beta-, beta+, electron capture)
o Gamma Decay (γ): calms nucleus by releasing photons, specifically gamma (γ) photons
 Mass # same, atomic # same (due to this simply being expulsion of energy)
 Photon: smallest amount of electromagnetic radiation, basic unit of all light
o Half Life (t1/2): time it takes for substance to decay to half its amount (exponential decrease)
 At t1/2 50% remains, at 2t1/2 25% remains, at 3t1/2 12.5% remains etc.
 Shorter the half-life, greater the decay
 Atom’s Emission Spectrum
o An atom’s electrons absorb energy and then re-emit it as light. Not random amounts of energy,
but very specific amounts based on its structure. So, the energy and wavelength, and thus,
colour of light that every atom emits is very specific (i.e. H, He etc.). This light acts as a useful
 “fingerprint” to identify things we can’t easily see. If a gas cloud emits a bunch of light
corresponding to H’s emission spectrum, we know the cloud has a lot of H

 Bohr Model of the Atom

o Only for atoms/ions with exactly ONE electron (known as “Bohr Atom”)
o Electrons orbit nucleus in circular paths and on different levels
o Distance from nucleus relates to energy of electrons (those on higher levels have more energy)
o 4 specific/“quantized” energy levels (n = 1, 2, 3, 4); only gain/lose exact energies, thus only
photons w/ certain energies/wavelengths seen (thus, elements have a line spectrum)
o Line spectrum: only few wavelengths seen (NOT continuous spectrum)
o Ground State: electron in lowest possible energy level (n=1)
o Excited State: electron having jumped to higher level (i.e. n=1  n=2/3/4)
o Can relax from higher energy to lower energy in steps (3  2  1) or directly (3  1)
 If directly, higher energy photon emitted
o Absorption: electron going from lower  higher, energy absorbed (increase in energy, + ΔE)
o Emission: electron going from higher  lower, energy released (decrease in energy, - ΔE)
o Once we find the ΔE, we can find the wavelength of the photon (look at equations below)
o All photons produced are within UV, visible, or infrared region
 Quantum Model of the Atom
o For atoms with MANY electrons
o Like Bohr, have quantized energy levels
o Like Bohr, energy levels correlate to distance
o Focuses on probable/likely locations of electrons in an atom (tells “address” of electron)
o 4 quantum numbers  shell (1, 2, 3, 4), subshell (s, p, d, f), orbital (2 e- per) , spin (up or down)
o Each orbital can hold 2 electrons (in 3D orientation). Electron can spin up or down
 1 electron goes in each orbital first before being paired up
 Spin-Paired: if full orbital, one spins up, one spins down
 Diamagnetic: 2 electrons in all orbitals (spin-paired); only if ALL orbitals paired
 Paragmagnetic: 1 electron in orbital
 Diamagnetic orbitals are repelled by magnetic fields, paramagnetic are attracted
o In “s” subshell, there is just 1 type of orbital where electrons move in spherical motion
o In “p” subshell, there are 3 types of orbitals where electrons move in dumbbell motions (x, y, z)
o Aufbau Principle: electrons occupy lowest levels first
o Hund’s Rule: electrons fill orbitals singly before pairing
o Pauli Exclusion Principle: no more than 2 electrons in an orbital
o Noble gases have valence electrons in filled subshells (“complete octet”)
 Can use nobles gases to shorten nomenclature (i.e. for chlorine = [Ne] 3s23p5)

Shell (n) Subshells Orbitals Maximum # of Electrons

1 s s=1 2
total orbitals = 1
2 s, p s = 1, p = 3 8
total orbitals = 4
3 s, p, d s = 1, p = 3, d = 5 18
total orbitals = 9
4 s, p, d, f s = 1, p = 3, d = 5, f = 7 32
total orbitals = 16

 Blocks in the Periodic Table

o Periodic table can be quick way to tell us “address” of electron
 o Period/row tells us shell (n); exception for atoms in “d” block where shell will be n-1
o Block tells us subshell (spdf)
o OR just use the chart method w/ arrows

 Anomilies within Electron Configurations

o Some atoms have lower energy state (higher stability) by having their d-subshell half- or full-filled
 i.e. Cr is better as [Ar]4s13d5 than [Ar]4s23d4 ; Cu is better as [Ar]4s13d10 than [Ar]4s23d9
o Others include molybdenum, silver, gold
 Electron Configurations of Ions
o Isoelectronic: when atom gains/loses electron, has same # electrons as element to its right/left
o When gain/loss of electron, look at its isoelectronic element for figuring out configuration
o Electrons removed always come off from highest “n” shell, and the highest energy orbital
within that level (f > d > p >s : from highest energy level to lowest energy level)
 Excited vs. Ground State
o If nomenclature is followed using rules above  atom is in ground state
o If nomenclature is not followed using rules above  atom is in excited state
 Atom has absorbed energy and has its electrons in places we wouldn’t predict as
probable ones
o Exicted state is NOT an ion. Atom has same # of electrons, but e- not in proper location
 Groups of the Periodic Table and their Characteristics
o Within same group/family (vertical), all elements have same # of valence electrons
o Elements try to achieve full octect – noble gases and He full valence, thus no reactions (inert)
o Closed Shell: full valence shell but no full octect (i.e. He, H-, Li+)
o Halogens very reactive because close to full octect
o Reactions between elements on opposite sides of table can be quite violent
o Metalloids: possess both metal and non-metal properties
o Some groups/families have special names:

Group Name Valence-Shell Group Name

Configuration d-block Transition Metals
1 Alkali Metals ns1 s and p Representative
2 Alkaline Metals ns2 blocks Elements
7 Halogens ns2np5 f block Rare Earth Metals
8 Noble Gases ns2np6

 Periodic Trends
o Shielding: filled shells reduce protons’ attraction on valence electrons. The electrons in between
are pushing the valence electrons out further and disrupting proton attraction (acting as a shield)
 Full Nuclear Charge (Z): charge that the protons would normally have on the electrons
 Effective Nuclear Charge (Zeff): the actual charge that protons have on electrons after
shielding (this is lower due to the shielding of electrons in between)
o Radius: from up  down, increases because more shells. From left  right, decreases because #
of protons increases but # of shells is the same (new shells only start at beginning of a period),
thus stronger pull on valence electrons.
o Ionization Energy: energy to remove least tightly bound electron (IE1). From down  up,
increases because less shells & smaller radius, thus stronger pull on electrons. From left  right,
increases because elements closer to full octet (He has highest ionization energy of all)
o Electron Affinity: ability of an atom to accept an electron. Describes the energy change that
occurs when an electron is added (the more negative the energy change, the greater the EA).
 From left  right, increases because radius decreases. From bottom  top, increases because
radius decreases.
 If energy is released to add an electron –ΔE, if energy is required to add electron +ΔE
o Electronegativity: strength of atom to pull electron to itself when forming covalent bond. From
left  right, increases because closer to full octet (if valence shell more than half full, strong to
pull an electron and vice versa). From bottom  top, increases because radius decreases.
 Order of 9 most EN elements: FONClBrISCH

o Acidity: measure of how well a compound donates protons, accepts electrons, or lowers pH. A
typical acid dissociates in water in the following manner: HX  H+ + X--. Thus, we can see a cation
hydrogen and anion X is produced. We can look at acidity in terms of having a stable anion X-
with a strong negative charge. From left  right, acidity increases because electronegativity
increases (a stronger pull on electrons keeps the anion nice and negatively charged). From top 
bottom, acidity increases because radius increases (the electrons are further from the positive
charge of nucleus, allowing the negative charge is able to delocalize and stabilize more)
Mass Number A =Z+N
Mass Number = # of protons + # of neutrons

Half-Life N2 = N1 (1/2)t/t1/2
Remaining Amount = Original Amount (1/2)time/half-life
Planck’s Relation Ephoton = hf = h(c/λ)
(Energy of a Energyphoton = (Planck Constant)(frequency) = (Planck Constant) (speed of light/wavelength)
Photon) Planck’s Constant = 6.63 x10-34J·s
Bohr Atom ΔE ΔE (Ephoton) = En1 – En2
(Calculating Energy Energy Emitted/Absorbed (Energyphoton) = Energyfinal level – Energyinitial level
Absorbed/Emitted)
En = (-2.178x10-18)/n2
Energy of “n” Level = (-2.178x10-18)/(Level “n”)2