Erbium

Lanthanide · atomic number 68

68167.2593ErErbiumSolidLanthanide

Erbium is a chemical element in the lanthanide series, with symbol Er and atomic number 68. A silvery-white solid metal when artificially isolated, natural erbium is always found in chemical combination with other elements on Earth. As such, it is a rare earth element which is associated with several other rare elements in the mineral gadolinite from Ytterby in Sweden, where yttrium, ytterbium, and terbium were discovered.

Properties of Erbium

Element category	Lanthanide
Atomic number	68
Atomic mass	167.2593 u
Phase at STP	Solid
Group	3
Period	6
Block	f
Electron configuration	[Xe] 4f12 6s2
Electrons per shell	2, 8, 18, 30, 8, 2
Electronegativity (Pauling)	1.24
Melting point	1802 K (1529 °C)
Boiling point	3141 K (2868 °C)
Density	9.066 g/cm3
Discovered by	Carl Gustaf Mosander

← Holmium · Periodic table · Thulium → Tm

About the lanthanide group

The rare-earth “inner transition” metals that give strong permanent magnets, screen phosphors and catalyst polish.

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