---
title: "The complete ground-state electron configuration of a neutral germanium atom ( \\(\\text{Ge}\\)) is \\(1s^2\\,2s^2\\,2p^6\\,3s^2\\,3p^6\\,3d^{10}\\,4s^2\\,4p^2\\). Which of the following statements best identifies the number of valence electrons in a \\(\\text{Ge}\\) atom and provides the correct justification for why the \\(3d^{10}\\) electrons are classified as core electrons?"
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url: "https://nerd-notes.com/ubq/123447/"
date_modified: "2026-09-28T11:59:44+00:00"
---

# The complete ground-state electron configuration of a neutral germanium atom (
\(\text{Ge}\)) is \(1s^2\,2s^2\,2p^6\,3s^2\,3p^6\,3d^{10}\,4s^2\,4p^2\). Which of the following statements best identifies the number of valence electrons in a \(\text{Ge}\) atom and provides the correct justification for why the \(3d^{10}\) electrons are classified as core electrons?

The complete ground-state electron configuration of a neutral germanium atom (
\(\text{Ge}\)) is \(1s^2\,2s^2\,2p^6\,3s^2\,3p^6\,3d^{10}\,4s^2\,4p^2\). Which of the following statements best identifies the number of valence electrons in a \(\text{Ge}\) atom and provides the correct justification for why the \(3d^{10}\) electrons are classified as core electrons?

- **A.** \(\text{Ge}\) has \(14\) valence electrons because all electrons occupying subshells beyond the preceding noble-gas core (\([\text{Ar}]\)) participate in valence bonding.
- **B.** \(\text{Ge}\) has \(14\) valence electrons because the filled \(3d\) subshell has a higher principal quantum number than the \(3s\) and \(3p\) subshells.
- **C.** \(\text{Ge}\) has \(4\) valence electrons because the \(4s\) and \(4p\) electrons shield the \(3d\) electrons from the nuclear charge, shifting the \(3d\) subshell to a higher energy level.
- **D.** \(\text{Ge}\) has \(4\) valence electrons because the completely filled \(3d\) subshell belongs to an inner principal energy level (\(n = 3\)) and is held more tightly by the nucleus than the outermost \(n = 4\) electrons.

*The answer key and step-by-step explanation are available to logged-in users at https://nerd-notes.com/ubq/123447/*