A d atomic orbital has a shape resembling
Question 28 options:
a) a sphere
b) a four leaf clover
c) a dumb-bell
d) a pyramid
e) the letter 't'
is the correct answer b)?
The correct answer is c) a dumb-bell. Atomic orbitals are regions of space around the nucleus where there is a high probability of finding an electron. The shape of the d orbital is described as having two lobes with a nodal plane running between them, resembling a dumb-bell.
No, the correct answer for the shape of a d atomic orbital is c) a dumb-bell.
To determine the shape of an atomic orbital, we need to consider the quantum numbers associated with it. In this case, the letter "d" represents the azimuthal quantum number, which can have values from -2 to +2.
The azimuthal quantum number determines the shape of the atomic orbital. For the d orbital, it has five possible orientations or shapes, which resemble a dumb-bell. Each orientation corresponds to a different value of the magnetic quantum number (ml), which can range from -2 to +2. These five orientations are labeled as dxy, dyz, dxz, dx2-y2, and dz2.
Therefore, the correct answer is c) a dumb-bell, since the d orbital has dumb-bell-shaped symmetry in all these orientations.