Chemistry / Unit 5 Chem 0836 short lesson, about 20 seconds
The p Orbital Shape
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The idea
Every p orbital, l = 1, has a two-lobed, dumbbell-shaped region split by a node at the nucleus, along one of three axes.
In practice
The three 2p orbitals point along the x, y, and z axes, each shaped as two lobes with a node.
Where people slip
A p orbital's node sits at the nucleus, meaning zero probability of holding the electron precisely there.
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