Shorthand Electronic Configuration for Curium (Cm, Z=96)

Published on March 8, 2026

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Determine the noble gas (shorthand) electronic configuration for Curium (Atomic Number 96) using the Aufbau principle by filling orbitals sequentially after the preceding noble gas, Radon [Rn].

Question

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Answer

This is a chemistry problem that asks for the shorthand electronic configuration of Curium ( ), which has an atomic number ( ) of 96, using the Aufbau principle.
The process to find the shorthand (noble gas) electronic configuration is as follows:

Step 1: Identify the noble gas preceding Curium.

The atomic number of Curium ( ) is . We look at the periodic table to find the noble gas with an atomic number less than 96.
The noble gases and their atomic numbers are:
  • : 2
  • : 10
  • : 18
  • : 36
  • : 54
  • : 86
  • : 118
The noble gas immediately preceding (96) is Radon ( ), with .

Step 2: Determine the remaining number of electrons.

The number of remaining electrons to be filled after the core is:

Step 3: Determine the electron filling order following Radon ( ).

The general filling order (Aufbau Principle) following Radon (which completes the through shells) starts with the orbital, followed by the , , and then orbitals, according to the energy level diagram:
For ( ), the configuration is . We need to place the remaining 10 electrons.
  1. orbital: Fills first, maximum 2 electrons.
    Remaining electrons: .
  2. orbital: Fills next, maximum 14 electrons. We have 8 electrons left.
    Remaining electrons: .

Step 4: Write the shorthand electronic configuration.

The shorthand electronic configuration for ( ) is:
(Note: While the orbitals are often written before the orbitals when following the strict Aufbau filling sequence after , the standard convention for the actinides often lists the electrons followed by the electrons if they are present, or groups the orbitals together. For , which is in the actinide series, the configuration is typically written with the electrons immediately following ).
The final answer using standard formatting is: