Dysprosium
Dysprosium (镝, symbol Dy) is chemical element number 66, a Lanthanide in period 6 of the periodic table, with a standard atomic weight of about 162.5. Silvery rare earth with strong magnetic susceptibility. Used in lasers and hard disks.
Properties
| Atomic number | 66 |
|---|---|
| Symbol | Dy |
| Atomic mass | 162.5 u |
| Category | Lanthanide |
| Period | 6 |
| Group | — |
| Electron configuration | [Xe] 4f¹⁰ 6s² |
| Electronegativity | 1.22 |
| Covalent radius | 192 pm |
| Density | 8.55 g/cm³ |
| Melting point | 1680 K |
| Boiling point | 2840 K |
| Discovery | Lecoq de Boisbaudran, 1886 |
Overview
Silvery rare earth with strong magnetic susceptibility. Used in lasers and hard disks. Dysprosium (Dy) is a Lanthanide with atomic number 66, located in period 6. As a lanthanide (rare-earth) element it closely resembles its neighbours and serves in magnets, phosphors and catalysts.
It has the configuration [Xe] 4f¹⁰ 6s² and an electronegativity near 1.22; its 2 outer-shell electrons drive its bonding. Under standard conditions it exists as a solid; it melts near 1680 K (1406.9 °C), boils near 2840 K (2566.9 °C), has a density around 8.55 g/cm³.
It is widely used in Electronics / Semiconductors and Nuclear. It was first described by Lecoq de Boisbaudran in 1886.
Electron shells
Electrons per shell: 2 · 8 · 18 · 28 · 8 · 2
Main uses
- Electronics / Semiconductors
- Nuclear
Hazard
Compounds containing Dysprosium
No compounds in this knowledge base contain Dysprosium yet.
Data sources
Atomic mass uses IUPAC (CIAAW) standard atomic weights; the covalent radius is from Cordero et al. (2008). Verify on the RSC Periodic Table, PubChem and Wikipedia. Educational reference only.