Here’s the electronic configuration for a pair of isotopes and a pair of isobars:
Isotopes:
Carbon-12 (⁶C¹²): 1s², 2s², 2p² (or 2, 4)
Carbon-14 (⁶C¹⁴): 1s², 2s², 2p² (or 2, 4)
Isobars:
Argon-40 (¹⁸Ar⁴⁰): 1s², 2s², 2p⁶, 3s², 3p⁶ (or 2, 8, 8)
Calcium-40 (²⁰Ca⁴⁰): 1s², 2s², 2p⁶, 3s², 3p⁶, 4s² (or 2, 8, 8, 2)
Explanation:
Isotopes:
These are atoms of the same element (carbon) with the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons. Since they have the same number of protons (and therefore the same number of electrons in a neutral atom), their electronic configurations are identical.
Isobars:
These are atoms of different elements (argon and calcium) that have the same mass number but different atomic numbers. This means they have different numbers of protons and neutrons, resulting in different electronic configurations.