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what is meant by d - orbitals?

In addition to s and p orbitals, there is another set of orbitals which becomes available for electrons to inhabit at higher energy levels. At the third level, there is a set of five d orbitals (with more complex shapes and names) as well as the 3s and 3p orbitals (3px, 3py, 3pz). At the third level there are a total of nine orbitals altogether.Four of the five d-orbitals look similar, each with four pear-shaped balls, each ball tangent to two others, and the centers of all four lying in one plane, between a pair of axes. Three of these planes are the xy-, xz-, and yz-planes, and the fourth has the centers on the x and y axes. The fifth and final d-orbital consists of three regions of high probability density: a torus with two pear-shaped regions placed symmetrically on its z axis.


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