Concept:The periodic table is built on the fundamental property of the atomic number,
Z, which is the number of protons in an atom's nucleus.
Explanation:The periodic table systematically arranges the elements in order of increasing atomic number.
Z increases by one from one element to the next across a period.
The atomic number determines the electronic configuration of an element.
The electronic configuration, in turn, determines the element's chemical properties and its position in the table.
Arranging by atomic number also corrects the faults of Mendeleev's older table, which was based on atomic weight.
For example, tellurium and iodine had their order swapped when using atomic weights, but atomic number placed them correctly.
This arrangement is known as the modern periodic law.
Answer:The correct option is D. atomic numbers.