Spin States and Ground State

[Emily_Stenzler_2H]

How would we determine if an atom is in excited or ground state from the spin states of its electrons?

[Chem_Mod]

To determine this, draw out the electron configuration. For example, if the last electron falls in the 2p orbital, the lowest state would be for it to be in the first of the three p orbitals (or px) with an upward spin. If it is in an excited state, it will occupy any of the other p orbitals (py, pz) or maybe even the next energy level.

[Jay Solanki 3A]

To add to this, ground state atoms would follow Hund's rule, where the electrons begin to pair only when all other orbitals are full. If there are multiple electrons in a single orbital even if the other orbitals are not filled with a single electron, the atom can also be considered excited. I believe there was an example in the textbook exercises that better explains this concept. Hope this helps!