Question

How many atomic orbitals are there in a g subshell?

Answer 1

You can determine how many orbitals the g-subshell would have by using quantum numbers.

The angular momentum quantum number, or `l`, tells you the subshell in which an electron is located. The values of `l` correspond to

`l = 0 ->` s-subshell;
`l = 1 ->` p-subshell;
`l = 2 ->` d-subshell;
`l = 3 ->` f-subshell
`l = 4 ->` g-subshell;

The type of orbitals a subshell contains is given by the magnetic quantum number, or `m_l`, which, as you can see, can take values ranging from `-l` to `+l`.

Since a g-subshell is described by an angular momentum quantum number equal to 4, you'll get a total of

`underbrace("-4, -3, -2, -1, 0 ,+1, +2, +3, +4")_(color(blue)("9 orbitals"))`

The equation that tells you the type of orbitals present in a subshell is

`m_l = 2l + 1`

Once again, the number of orbitals present in a g-subshell will be

`m_l = 2 * 4 + 1 = 9`