Question

How many electrons can fit in the orbital for which $n=3$ and $l=1$?

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Answer 1

Here, n=3 indicates electrons are present in energy level 3.
The azimuthal quantum number (l) denotes the subshell to which the electron belongs and also its angular momentum in its motion around the nucleus.
l = 0,1,2,3 indicates s, p, d, f sub-shell respectively.
We have given l =1 that indicates electrons are present in subshell p.
So, n=3 and l = 1 indicates electrons are present in the 3p subshell.
The number of orbitals for a given value of an azimuthal quantum number can be calculated using the formula
$(2l+1)$
.
Here the value of l is 1
So,
$(2l+1)=3$

The p subshell has a maximum of 3 orbitals and each orbital contains a maximum of 2 electrons.
So, a maximum of 6 electrons fit in the orbital for which n=3 and l = 1