* Iodine's Electron Configuration: Iodine has an atomic number of 53, meaning it has 53 electrons. Its electron configuration is [Xe] 4f¹⁴ 5d¹⁰ 6s² 6p⁵.
* Noble Gas Configuration: The nearest noble gas to iodine is Xenon (Xe), which has a full outer shell with 8 electrons.
* Gaining an Electron: By gaining one electron, iodine fills its 6p orbital, achieving the same electron configuration as Xenon: [Xe] 4f¹⁴ 5d¹⁰ 6s² 6p⁶.
Therefore, iodine gains one electron to achieve a stable, noble gas configuration.