1.3.8—And sketch the shapes of s and p orbitals

An s sub-shell contains one orbital with a spherical shape. The size of the s orbital increases with principal shell number, but its shape remains spherical in this model.

A p sub-shell contains three orbitals, labelled pₓ, pᵧ and p_z. Each has a dumbbell-like shape and is oriented along one of three mutually perpendicular axes; in a ground-state atom the three p orbitals in one sub-shell have equal energy.

Use the shapes to describe allowed regions and spatial orientation, not fixed electron tracks. The label 2p identifies shell n = 2 and the p sub-shell; it does not change the orbital shapes into separate shells.

At this level, recognise and compare s and p shapes without adding detailed d-orbital drawings. Shape, orbital count and electron occupancy are related but distinct properties.