What is the ground-state electron configuration of the Cr+ ion?

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BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

To tackle the ground-state electron configuration of Cr+, we first recall the general pattern for transition metals: electrons are removed first from the outermost shell, and for chromium, the neutral atom is commonly written as [Ar] 3d5 4s1. This helps us predict how Cr+ differs from Cr.
Option 1: [Ar]4s23d4. This would imply Cr+ retained a full 4s subshell with two electrons and reduced the 3d count to four. However, in forming Cr+, one electron is removed from the outermost shell, which is the 4s orbital in this case, so keeping 4s2 and reducing 3d from 5 to 4 is not consistent with the usual ionization order for transition metals. Consequently, this configuration is not correct for Cr+.
Option 2: [Ar]3d5. This matches the expectation that the single 4s electron is removed, leaving the 3d5 subshell filled as in the neutral state minus the 4s electron. Since Cr neutral is [Ar] 3d5 4s1, removing the 4s electron yields [Ar] 3d5 for Cr+. This aligns with established ionization behavior for chromium and gives a plausible ground state.
Option 3: [Ar]4s23d5. This represents the neutral chromium configuration, where both 4s electrons are present along with 3d5. As Cr+ has lost one electron, we would not expect the 4s subshell to remain fully populated. Therefore, this option cannot describe Cr+ in its ground state.
Option 4: [Ar]4s23d3. Here, two electrons occupy 4s and only three occupy 3d, totaling eight valence electrons in the transition region. This would correspond to a much higher degree of electron removal from 3d than is typical for Cr+, and it misrepresents the electron removal sequence from Cr. Hence it is not correct for Cr+.
Option 5: [Ar]4s13d4. This implies an unusual distribution with a single 4s electron and four in 3d, which does not follow the standard ionization pattern for chromium, where the 4s electron is removed first to form Cr+. Thus this configuration is not consistent with Cr+ ground state.
In summary, evaluating the ionization behavior of chromium and the known neutral configuration helps identify which option matches Cr+. Among the choices, the one that aligns with removing the 4s electron from the neutral state to yield a [Ar]3d5 configuration is the most consistent with Cr+ ground state behavior.

What is the ground-state electron configuration of the Cr+ ion?

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