Are 5s and 5p considered to be degenerate orbitals? I know degenerate orbitals mean that they have the same energy but different spatial arrangement.
Since there is only one 5s orbital, how can that be degenerate? There are three 5p orbitals and they are degenerate
Yes, the 5s and 5p orbitals are considered to be degenerate orbitals. In the context of electron configurations, degenerate orbitals refer to orbitals that have the same energy but different spatial orientation within the same energy level.
To determine if the 5s and 5p orbitals are degenerate, you can refer to the periodic table. The principal energy level, n, determines the energy of an orbital, and the letter denotes the shape of the orbital. In this case, both the 5s and 5p orbitals have the same principal energy level, which is 5. Therefore, they have the same energy.
It's important to note that the 5s orbital is spherically symmetrical and has a spherical shape, while the 5p orbitals are dumbbell-shaped with three different orientations (px, py, and pz). Although they have different spatial arrangements, their energies are the same within the same principal energy level, making them degenerate orbitals.