The electronic configuration of an element describes how its electrons are distributed among the various atomic orbitals and energy levels.
Chlorine (Cl) has an atomic number of 17, which means it has 17 electrons. The electronic configuration of chlorine can be determined by following the Aufbau principle, which states that electrons occupy the lowest energy levels first.
The electronic configuration of chlorine is: 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁵.
This means that chlorine has two electrons in the 1s orbital, two electrons in the 2s orbital, six electrons in the 2p orbital, two electrons in the 3s orbital, and five electrons in the 3p orbital.
Magnesium (Mg), on the other hand, has an atomic number of 12 and 12 electrons. Its electronic configuration is: 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s².
This indicates that magnesium has two electrons in the 1s orbital, two electrons in the 2s orbital, six electrons in the 2p orbital, and two electrons in the 3s orbital.
In terms of their positions in the periodic table, chlorine is located in Group 17 (Group 7A in older notation) and belongs to the halogen family. It is in the third period of the periodic table.
Magnesium is located in Group 2 (Group 2A in older notation) and belongs to the alkaline earth metals. It is in the third period of the periodic table as well.