An atomic orbital is a mathematical function that escribes the wave-like behavior of an electron in an atom. The region in which an electron may be found around a single atom in a particular energy state can be calculated from this function. The term "orbital" has become known as either the "mathematical function" or the "region" generated with the function. Specifically, atomic orbitals are the possible quantum states of an individual electron in the electron cloud around a single atom, as described by the function.