What is the ground-state electron configuration of zinc (Zn) in noble-gas shorthand notation?

• A. $\left[\mathrm{Ne}\right]3^{s}23^{p}64^{s}23^{d}10$
• B. $\left[\mathrm{Kr}\right]4^{d}10$
• C. $\left[\mathrm{Ar}\right]4^{s}23^{d}8$
• D. $\left[\mathrm{Ar}\right]4^{s}23^{d}10$

Answer: (D)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Identify the atomic number of zinc (Zn), which is 30. This tells us that zinc has 30 electrons to arrange in its electron configuration.
2. Recall the order in which electron orbitals are filled according to the Aufbau principle: 1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p, 4s, then 3d, and so on.
3. Write the full electron configuration for zinc by filling orbitals in order until you reach 30 electrons: 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 4s² 3d¹⁰.
4. Convert the full configuration into noble-gas shorthand notation by replacing the configuration of the previous noble gas with its symbol. The noble gas before zinc is argon (Ar), which has 18 electrons: [Ar].
5. Complete the shorthand notation by adding the remaining electrons after argon: [Ar] 4s² 3d¹⁰.