Periodic Table/Erbium
← HoTm →
68Er167.2590 Da

Erbium

Lanthanide·Period 6·f-block

Soft silvery metallic element which belongs to the lanthanoids. Six natural isotopes that are stable. Twelve artificial isotopes are known. Used in nuclear technology as a neutron absorber. It is being investigated for other possible uses. Discovered by Carl G. Mosander in 1843.

Gallery

9.5 Gramms Pure Erbium, 2 x 2 cm

Jurii, CC BY 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons, source: https://images-of-elements.com/erbium.php

Bohr model of Erbium

Physical Propertiesmass · density · phase · crystal

Atomic Mass

167.2590Da

Density

9.0700g/cm³

Phase (STP)

Solid

Melting Point

1802.2K

Boiling Point

3141.2K

Molar Heat

0.1680J/(mol·K)

Crystal Structure

HEX

Lattice Constant

3.560Å

Atomic Radiiatomic · covalent · van der Waals

Atomic (Empirical)

175.00pm

Covalent

165.00pm

Van der Waals

229.00pm

Electronic Propertieselectronegativity · ionization · affinity

Electron Configuration

[Xe] 4f12 6s2

Electron Shells

2, 8, 18, 30, 8, 2

Electronegativity

1.24Pauling

Electron Affinity

—

1st Ionization Energy

6.1kJ/mol

Oxidation States

+3

Orbital DiagramAufbau · Hund's rule · Pauli exclusion

↑↓
1s2
↑↓
2s2
↑↓
↑↓
↑↓
2p6
↑↓
3s2
↑↓
↑↓
↑↓
3p6
↑↓
↑↓
↑↓
↑↓
↑↓
3d10
↑↓
4s2
↑↓
↑↓
↑↓
4p6
↑↓
↑↓
↑↓
↑↓
↑↓
4d10
↑↓
5s2
↑↓
↑↓
↑↓
5p6
↑↓
↑↓
↑↓
↑↓
↑↓
↑
↑
4f12
↑↓
6s2

Full: 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d10 4s2 4p6 4d10 5s2 5p6 4f12 6s2Short: [Xe] 4f12 6s2

Ionization Energies (68 known)

1st6.1 kJ/mol2nd11.9 kJ/mol3rd22.7 kJ/mol4th42.4 kJ/mol5th65.1 kJ/mol6th96.0 kJ/mol7th114.0 kJ/mol8th131.0 kJ/mol9th158.0 kJ/mol10th177.0 kJ/mol11th201.0 kJ/mol12th235.0 kJ/mol13th268.0 kJ/mol14th290.0 kJ/mol15th311.0 kJ/mol16th345.0 kJ/mol17th381.0 kJ/mol18th415.0 kJ/mol19th450.0 kJ/mol20th486.0 kJ/mol21th520.0 kJ/mol22th555.0 kJ/mol23th770.0 kJ/mol24th810.0 kJ/mol25th853.0 kJ/mol26th899.0 kJ/mol27th943.0 kJ/mol28th989.0 kJ/mol29th1046.0 kJ/mol30th1092.0 kJ/mol31th1142.0 kJ/mol32th1188.0 kJ/mol33th1370.0 kJ/mol34th1416.0 kJ/mol35th1468.0 kJ/mol36th1516.0 kJ/mol37th1625.0 kJ/mol38th1678.0 kJ/mol39th1803.0 kJ/mol40th1858.5 kJ/mol41th3157.0 kJ/mol42th3265.0 kJ/mol43th3381.0 kJ/mol44th3505.0 kJ/mol45th3624.0 kJ/mol46th3742.0 kJ/mol47th3916.0 kJ/mol48th4038.0 kJ/mol49th4170.0 kJ/mol50th4294.0 kJ/mol51th4639.0 kJ/mol52th4748.0 kJ/mol53th4866.0 kJ/mol54th4978.0 kJ/mol55th5329.0 kJ/mol56th5455.0 kJ/mol57th5695.0 kJ/mol58th5815.0 kJ/mol59th12918.0 kJ/mol60th13217.0 kJ/mol61th13548.0 kJ/mol62th13855.0 kJ/mol63th15146.0 kJ/mol64th15511.0 kJ/mol65th15971.0 kJ/mol66th16274.6 kJ/mol67th65848.2 kJ/mol68th67241.5 kJ/molSuccessive Ionization Energies

Emission Spectrumvisible range · characteristic spectral lines

401
415
441
Er emission
380nm750nm
400.8 nm(100%)415.1 nm(60%)440.9 nm(30%)

Abundanceby mass

🌍Earth's Crust
3.5 ppm
🌊Ocean
9.0e-7 ppm
✨Universe
2.0 ppb
🧬Human Body—

Log scale · ppm = parts per million by mass

Biological Role

No biological role

No known biological role.

Discovery

Discovered By

Carl Mosander

Named By

—

Year

1843

Nuclear Data

Known Isotopes

39

Stable Isotopes

6

Stable Mass Numbers

162, 164, 166, 167, 168, 170

Natural isotopic abundance (IUPAC recommended values)

Isotopes of Er39 known

NuclideZNMass (AMU)Half-lifeDecayJπAbundance
142Er6874141.970016Unknownp0+—
143Er6875142.966548Unknownβ⁺, β⁺p9/2-—
144Er6876143.960700Unknownβ⁺0+—
162Erstable6894161.928787Stableα, 2β⁺0+13.9000%
164Erstable6896163.929208Stableα, 2β⁺0+160.1000%
166Erstable6898165.930301Stablestable (1%)0+3350.3000%
167Erstable6899166.932056Stablestable (1%)7/2+2286.9000%
168Erstable68100167.932378Stablestable (1%)0+2697.8000%
170Erstable68102169.935472Stable2β⁻, α0+1491.0000%
178Er68110177.956779Unknownβ⁻0+—
179Er68111178.961267Unknownβ⁻, β⁻n3/2-—
180Er68112179.964380Unknownβ⁻, β⁻n0+—

Click any isotope for its full page with decay chain:

142Er143Er144Er145Er146Er147Er148Er149Er150Er151Er152Er153Er154Er155Er156Er157Er158Er159Er160Er161Er162Er163Er164Er165Er166Er167Er168Er169Er170Er171Er172Er173Er174Er175Er176Er177Er178Er179Er180Er
Wikipedia →Data: Bowserinator · IAEA NDS · mendeleev