The electron configuration
1
s
2
2
s
2
2
p
6
3
s
2
3
p
2
is the element Silicon.
The key to deciphering this is to look at the last bit of information of the electron configuration
3
p
2
.
The '3' informs us that the element is in the 3rd Energy Level or row of the periodic table. The 'p' tells us that the element is found in the p-block which are all of the Groups to the right of the transition metals, columns 13-18. The superscript '2' tells us that the element is found in the 2nd column of the p-block Group 14.
