Question

What is the electron configuration for the silicon atom?

Answer 1

`[Ne]3s^2\3p^2`

Explanation:

Silicon has an atomic number of `14`, so a neutral silicon atom would have `14` electrons.

Therefore, it would have enough electrons to fill up till its `3p` shell.

Its electron configuration would be

`1s^2\2s^2\2p^6\3s^2\3p^2`

We know that neon is a noble gas with an electron configuration of
`1s^2\2s^2\2p^6`.

So, we can shorten silicon's electron configuration to a noble-gas configuration, which would be

`[Ne]3s^2\3p^2`