Is Zn+2 diamagnetic or paramagnetic? I am a little confused on how to figure this out and I'm finding inconsistent answers when I tried to look this up.
Thanks!
Look up or configure yourself the electron structure of Zn^+2.
1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d10 . Since there are no unpaired electrons it is diamagnetic.
To determine whether Zn+2 is diamagnetic or paramagnetic, we need to consider the electron configuration of Zn+2.
Zinc (Zn) has an atomic number of 30, which means it has 30 electrons in its neutral state. When Zn loses two electrons to form Zn+2, it becomes a cation. To find the electron configuration of Zn+2, we need to remove two electrons from the neutral Zn atom. The electron configuration of neutral Zn is [Ar] 3d10 4s2.
Now, if we remove two electrons, we get the electron configuration of Zn+2: [Ar] 3d10.
To determine whether an ion is diamagnetic or paramagnetic, we look at the presence or absence of unpaired electrons. Diamagnetic substances have all their electrons paired, while paramagnetic substances have at least one unpaired electron.
In the case of Zn+2, the electron configuration [Ar] 3d10 indicates that all the electrons are paired. Therefore, Zn+2 is diamagnetic.
The inconsistency you might have encountered when looking up the answer could be due to the fact that electron configurations are sometimes not explicitly stated or there may be typographical errors.