erbium
a rare-earth metallic element, having pink salts. Symbol: Er; atomic weight: 167.26; atomic number: 68.
Origin of erbium
1Words Nearby erbium
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use erbium in a sentence
To accommodate the S-band, the team doped—that is, they introduced new substances to change the material’s properties—two amplifiers, one with the element erbium, the other with thulium.
Japan Sets New Record for Internet Speed at 319 Terabits per Second | Jason Dorrier | July 18, 2021 | Singularity Huberbium, a rare metal found along with yttrium, terbium, and other rare elements in some rare minerals.
The New Gresham Encyclopedia | Various(c.) Yttria (YO) occurs only in a few rare minerals, and usually in company with terbium and erbium.
A rare metal found by Prof. Mosander, associated with erbium and yttrium in ordinary yttria.
Cooley's Practical Receipts, Volume II | Arnold Cooley
British Dictionary definitions for erbium
/ (ˈɜːbɪəm) /
a soft malleable silvery-white element of the lanthanide series of metals: used in special alloys, room-temperature lasers, and as a pigment. Symbol: Er; atomic no: 68; atomic wt: 167.26; valency: 3; relative density: 9.006; melting pt: 1529°C; boiling pt: 2868°C
Origin of erbium
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for erbium
[ ûr′bē-əm ]
A soft, silvery, metallic element of the lanthanide series. It is used as a neutron absorber in nuclear technology and in light amplification for fiber-optic telecommunications. Atomic number 68; atomic weight 167.26; melting point 1,497°C; boiling point 2,900°C; specific gravity 9.051; valence 3. See Periodic Table.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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