Question

Many times the claim is made that subshells half-filled with electrons are particularly stable. Can you suggest a possible physical basis for this claim?

Short answer

Half-filled subshells are particularly stable due to the symmetric distribution of electrons in the subshell, which minimizes electron-electron repulsion and leads to a relatively lower energy state. Additionally, each unpaired electron in a half-filled subshell contributes to the total magnetic moment of the atom, resulting in greater stability compared to paired electrons in orbitals that cancel out their magnetic moments and may cause increased repulsion.

Step-by-step solution

Introduction to electron configurations and principles

In an atom, electrons are arranged in energy levels, which are further divided into subshells that can contain a specific number of electrons. The stability of an electron configuration depends on the distribution of electrons in these energy levels and subshells. There are three main principles that govern electron configurations: 1. Aufbau principle: Electrons are added to the lowest energy subshells available. 2. Pauli exclusion principle: No two electrons in an atom can have the same set of quantum numbers. Each orbital within a subshell can have a maximum of two electrons that have opposite spins. 3. Hund's rule: For a given set of degenerate (same energy) orbitals, electrons are placed in individual orbitals before pairing up with opposite spins to maximize the total spin.

Half-filled subshell stability

Now let's discuss the physical basis for the stability of half-filled subshells. For a half-filled subshell, there is one electron in each orbital (following Hund's rule). This creates a symmetric distribution of electrons in the subshell, and every electron has its own space and experiences minimal electron-electron repulsion. This leads to a relatively lower energy state and increased stability. Additionally, each unpaired electron in a half-filled subshell contributes to the total magnetic moment of the atom. The atom would prefer to maintain this higher magnetic moment, which results in greater stability. In contrast, pairing electrons in orbitals would cancel out their magnetic moments and may cause increased repulsion between these paired electrons. In summary, half-filled subshells are particularly stable due to the symmetric electron distribution, minimized electron-electron repulsion, and enhanced magnetic moments.