Question

The paramagnetism of lanthanoids is due to both ______ and ______.

Answer 1

The paramagnetism of lanthanoids is due to both electron spin and orbital motion.

Explanation:

Unpaired 4f electrons give a magnetic moment by their spin, and because 4f orbitals are deeply shielded, the electrons also retain a strong orbital contribution. Together, these spin and orbital effects determine the lanthanoid magnetic behaviour, so the moment doesn’t depend only on the number of unpaired electrons.