Erbium

The mineral gadolinite ((Ce, La, Nd, Y)2FeBe2Si2O10), discovered in a quarry near the town of Ytterby, Sweden, has been the source of a great number of rare earth elements. In 1843, Carl Gustaf Mosander, a Swedish chemist, was able to separate gadolinite into three materials, which he named yttria, erbia and terbia. As might be expected considering the similarities between their names and properties, scientists soon confused erbia and terbia and, by 1877, had reversed their names. What Mosander called erbia is now called terbia and visa versa. From these two substances, Mosander discovered two new elements, terbium and erbium. Today, erbium is primarily obtained through an ion exchange process from the minerals xenotime (YPO4) and euxenite ((Y, Ca, Er, La, Ce, U, Th)(Nb, Ta, Ti)2O6). Erbium is alloyed with vanadium to make it softer and easier to shape. Erbium is added to fiber optic cables as a doping agent where it is used as a signal amplifier. Erbium also has some uses in the nuclear power industry. Erbia, the renamed material that Mosander discovered in 1843, is erbium oxide (Er2O3), one of erbium's compounds. Erbia has a pink color and is used to color glass and glazes. Other erbium compounds include: erbium fluoride (ErF3, erbium chloride (ErCl3 and erbium iodide (ErI3).
 * Erbium**
 * Atomic Number:** 68
 * Atomic Weight:** 167.259
 * Melting Point:** 1802 K (1529°C or 2784°F)
 * Boiling Point:** 3141 K (2868°C or 5194°F)
 * Density:** 9.07 grams per cubic centimeter
 * Phase at Room Temperature:** Solid
 * Element Classification:** Metal
 * Period Number:** 6 **Group Number:** none **Group Name:** Lanthanide
 * What's in a name?** Named for the village of Ytterby, Sweden.
 * Say what?** Erbium is pronounced as **UR-bee-em**.
 * History and Uses:**
 * Estimated Crustal Abundance:** 3.5 milligrams per kilogram
 * Estimated Oceanic Abundance:** 8.7×10-7 milligrams per liter
 * Number of Stable Isotopes:** 6 (View all isotope data)
 * Ionization Energy:** 6.108 eV
 * Oxidation State:** +3



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]. Erbium's principal uses involve its pink-colored Er3+ ions, which have optical fluorescent properties particularly useful in certain laser applications. Erbium-doped glasses or crystals can be used as optical amplification media, where erbium (III) ions are optically pumped at around 980 nm or 1480 nm and then radiate light at 1530 nm in stimulated emission. This process results in an unusually mechanically simple [|laser] [|optical amplifier] for signals transmitted by fiber optics. The 1550 nm wavelength is especially important for [|optical communications] because standard single mode [|optical fibers] have minimal loss at this particular wavelength. In addition to optical fiber lasers, a large variety of medical applications (i.e. dermatology, dentistry) utilize the erbium ion's 2940 nm emission (see [|Er:YAG laser]), which is highly absorbed in water in tissues, making its effect very superficial. Such shallow tissue deposition of laser energy is helpful in [|laser surgery], and for the efficient production of steam for laser enamel ablation in certain types of [|laser dentistry].

**What's in a name?** Named for the village of Ytterby, Sweden. **Say what?** Erbium is pronounced as **UR-bee-em**. **History and Uses:** The mineral gadolinite ((Ce, La, Nd, Y) 2 FeBe 2 Si 2 O 10 ), discovered in a quarry near the town of Ytterby, Sweden, has been the source of a great number of rare earth elements. In 1843, Carl Gustaf Mosander, a Swedish chemist, was able to separate gadolinite into three materials, which he named yttria, erbia and terbia. As might be expected considering the similarities between their names and properties, scientists soon confused erbia and terbia and, by 1877, had reversed their names. What Mosander called erbia is now called terbia and visa versa. From these two substances, Mosander discovered two new elements, [|terbium] and erbium. Today, erbium is primarily obtained through an ion exchange process from the minerals xenotime (YPO 4 ) and euxenite ((Y, Ca, Er, La, Ce, U, Th)(Nb, Ta, Ti) 2 O 6 ). Erbium is alloyed with [|vanadium] to make it softer and easier to shape. Erbium is added to fiber optic cables as a doping agent where it is used as a signal amplifier. Erbium also has some uses in the nuclear power industry. Erbia, the renamed material that Mosander discovered in 1843, is erbium oxide (Er 2 O 3 ), one of erbium's compounds. Erbia has a pink color and is used to color glass and glazes. Other erbium compounds include: erbium fluoride (ErF 3, erbium chloride (ErCl 3 and erbium iodide (ErI 3 ). **Estimated Crustal Abundance:** 3.5 milligrams per kilogram **Estimated Oceanic Abundance:** 8.7×10 -7 milligrams per liter **Number of Stable Isotopes:** 6 ( [|View all isotope data] ) **Ionization Energy:** 6.108 eV **Oxidation State:** +3
 * nuclear industry
 * metallurgical uses. Added to vanadium, for example, erbium lowers hardness and improves workability
 * erbium oxide is pink and is a colourant in glasses and porcelain enamel glazes
 * photographic filter
 * ** [|Electron Shell Configuration] :** ||  ||   || 1s 2 ||   ||   ||   ||   ||   ||   ||   ||
 * 2s 2 ||  || 2p 6 ||   ||   ||   ||   ||   ||
 * 3s 2 ||  || 3p 6 ||   || 3d 10 ||   ||   ||   ||
 * 4s 2 ||  || 4p 6 ||   || 4d 10 ||   || 4f 12 ||   ||
 * 5s 2 ||  || 5p 6 ||   ||   ||   ||   ||   ||
 * < 6s 2 ||<  ||<   ||   ||