rutherfordium

[ ruhth-er-fawr-dee-uhm, -fohr-, ruhth- ]

noun

, Chemistry, Physics.

1. a superheavy, synthetic, radioactive element with a very short half-life. : Rf; : 104.

rutherfordium

/ ˌrʌðəˈfɔːdɪəm /

noun

1. a transactinide element produced by bombarding californium-249 nuclei with carbon-12 nuclei. Symbol: Rf; atomic number.: 104; atomic wt: 261 Name in the former Soviet Unionkurchatovium

rutherfordium

/ rŭth′ər-fôr′dē-əm /

1. A synthetic, radioactive element that is produced by bombarding plutonium with carbon or neon ions. Its most stable isotope is Rf 261 with a half-life of 62 seconds. Atomic number 104.
2. See Periodic Table

Word History and Origins

Origin of rutherfordium¹

First recorded in 1965–70; officially assigned to element 104 in 1997; named after English physicist Ernest Rutherford; -ium ( def )

Word History and Origins

Origin of rutherfordium¹

C20: named after Ernest Rutherford