Ce
Cerium · element 58
Lanthanide · Solid at room temperature
Cerium is a chemical element with symbol Ce and atomic number 58. It is a soft, silvery, ductile metal which easily oxidizes in air. Cerium was named after the dwarf planet Ceres (itself named after the Roman goddess of agriculture).
Key facts
Atomic mass
140.1161 u
how heavy one atom is
Phase (room temp.)
Solid
Density
6.77 g/cm³
how tightly packed it is
Melting point
1068 K (795 °C)
when solid turns to liquid
Boiling point
3716 K (3443 °C)
when liquid turns to gas
Period
6
its row in the periodic table
Group
3
its column in the periodic table
Block
F-block
the neighbourhood it lives in
Electronegativity
1.12
how strongly it pulls electrons
Electron configuration
[Xe] 4f1 5d1 6s2
where its electrons live
Shells
2 · 8 · 18 · 19 · 9 · 2
electrons in each layer, inside to out
Discovered by
Martin Heinrich Klaproth
who found it
Appearance
silvery white
what it looks like
Source: Wikipedia