Germanium Trivia PDF

Chosen element “GERMANIUM” Just the facts 📌Element Name: Germanium 📌Atomic symbol (on the periodic table of elements): Ge 📌Atomic number (number of protons in the nucleus): 32 📌Atomic weight (average mass of the atom): 72.630 📌Density: 3.077 ounces per cubic inch (5.323 grams per cubic cm)...

Chosen element “GERMANIUM” Just the facts 📌Element Name: Germanium 📌Atomic symbol (on the periodic table of elements): Ge 📌Atomic number (number of protons in the nucleus): 32 📌Atomic weight (average mass of the atom): 72.630 📌Density: 3.077 ounces per cubic inch (5.323 grams per cubic cm) 📌Phase at room temperature: solid 📌Melting point: 1,720.9 degrees Fahrenheit (938.3 degrees Celsius) 📌Boiling point: 5,131 F (2,833 C) 📌Bond Type: Germanium forms covalent bonds, characteristic of its four valence electrons. 📌Molecular Structure: Metallic gray, brittle in its solid form. Further Information * Pure germanium is a hard, lustrous, gray-white, brittle metalloid. * Germanium is stable in air and water, and is unaffected by alkalis and acids, except nitric acid. History You might think the name germanium sounds like the country Germany. You’d be right. Germanium was discovered in 1886 by a chemist named Winkler and was named after Germany. You will find many other elements that were named after people or places as you study the elements of the periodic table. Although germanium was not discovered until 1886 by Clemens Winkler, a German chemist, its existence, properties, and position in the periodic system had been predicted in 1871 by the Russian chemist Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleyev, who called the hypothetical element ekasilicon. (The name germanium derives from the Latin word Germania [Germany] and was given to the element by Winkler.) Germanium did not become economically significant until after 1945, when its properties as a semiconductor were recognized as being of value in electronics. Germaniun is a chemical element between silicon and tin in Group 14 (Iva) of the periodic table, a silvery- gray metalloid, intermediate in properties between the metals and the nonmetals. Many other substances now also are used as semiconductors, but germanium remains of primary importance in the manufacture of transistors and of components for devices such as rectifiers and photocells. Germanium has been found in many minerals and when purified, is a grayish color but has physicals traits of both a metal and a crystal. It is very brittle and can even shatter. It is in the same family with the elements carbon and silicon. Uses 1. Germanium is also used as an alloying agent (adding 1% germanium to silver stops it from tarnishing), in fluorescent lamps and as a catalyst. 2. Significance: Used in semiconductors, fiber optics, and infrared optics. 3. Role in Chemistry: Germanium’s role in semiconductors revolutionized the electronics industry, and it’s vital in organometallic chemistry. 4. In addition to its applications in electronic devices, germanium is used as a component of alloys and in phosphors for fluorescent lamps. Because germanium is transparent to infrared radiation, it is employed in equipment used for detecting and measuring such radiation, such as windows and lenses. 5. This makes it suitable for use in wide-angle camera lenses and objective lenses for microscopes. This is now the major use for this element. Germanium is also used as an alloying agent (adding 1% germanium to silver stops it from tarnishing), in fluorescent lamps and as a catalyst. Where can you find germanium? Camera Lenses Germanium is used in the manufacture of wide-angle camera lenses. The element gives special properties to the glass. Semiconductors Because germanium has traits that are similar to silicon and tin, the semiconductor industry uses germanium on a regular basis. Alloys It’s not that germanium is some awesome metal, it’s just a good element to add to other metals. In the same way that you might add carbon to steel manufacturing, sometimes you add germanium. Fluorescent Lamps Those big fluorescent tubes have a coating on the inside that allows them to glow. Germanium is one of the elements on the inside of the fluorescent bulbs. Did you know? During World War II, germanium was considered a strategic material, and its production was kept secret. This was due to its importance in the development of radar technology. Germanium was also used in several special electronic devices, which are mostly diodes. Its first major application was during the war when it was used to create the point-contact Schottky diodes for radar pulse detection