How can the atomic number be determined from an electron configuration?

Question

Avery Adams · Accepted Answer

Count the electrons present to give you the atomic number of an atom.

The quantity of protons in an atom's nucleus is known as its atomic number. The number of protons and electrons in an atom (not an ion) is equal. Consequently, you can find the atomic number just by counting how many electrons are visible in the configuration. If you are given an electron configuration with an ionic charge (e.g. #2+# or #-#, then count the number of electrons you see and add or subtract the ionic charge. For example, if there are 10 electrons present, and the charge is #+# (which is the same as #1+#), then do #10 + 1 = 11#, which is the atomic number of sodium.

Mateo Aguilar · Answer

undefined An atom's atomic number can be found by counting the number of electrons in its electron configuration; each electron configuration represents an element, and the atomic number of that element is found in the number of electrons in that configuration.