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Copernicium: Key Facts, Properties, and Importance

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How Was Copernicium Discovered and What Makes It Unique?

What is Copernicium?

Copernicium is a chemical element with the atomic number 112 and symbol Cn. It is a synthetic element which is extremely radioactive. This element belongs to the d-block, 7th period and group 12 in the periodic table of elements. It remains in the gas state at standard temperature and pressure. The electronic configuration of this radioactive chemical element is [Rn] 5f14 6d107s2. All the known isotopes of this element are radioactive and have very short half-lives. The atomic mass of Cn element is 285. The basic information of copernicium is as follows. 

Name of the Element

Copernicium

Symbol

Cn

Group 

12

Period

7

Block

D

State at standard temperature and pressure

Gas or volatile liquid

Electronic configuration

[Rn] 5f14 6d107s2

Atomic weight

285


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The above image shows the position of copernicium in the periodic table of elements.


Discovery

Copernicium was first synthesized at the Gesellschaft für Schwerionenforschung (GSI) in Darmstadt, Germany. Sigurd Hofmann and Victor Ninov et al. first produced this chemical element on February 9, 1996. The production of this element took place in a heavy-ion accelerator by firing accelerated nuclei of zinc-70 at a destination created with lead-208 nuclei. This process leads to the formation of a single atom of copernicium which has a mass number of 277.

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In May 2000, the scientists repeated the same process for producing the further atom of copernicium with mass number 277. Scientists at Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Dubna, Russia also attempted to create 276Cn in 1971, but their team didn't get success. In 2004 and 2013, scientists at RIKEN repeated the same experiment of GSI scientists to produce three atoms of copernicium. 

The IUPAC/IUPAP Joint Working Party (JWP) rejected that the GSI team had discovered copernicium's discovery in 2001 and 2003. They said that the team was not able to provide sufficient evidence for the discovery. After a detailed study, JWP finally gave the proper credit to the GSI team for the detection of this chemical element. 


Naming 

Before the official discovery of the copernicium, people knew it by the name eka-mercury. The IUPAC recommended calling Cn as ununbium before its formal discovery. However, most of the scientist in the world prefer calling it Element 112. After recognizing the claim of the GSI team by IUPAC, they asked the discoverers to suggest a name. On July 14 2009, the team proposed the name copernicium in honour of Nicolaus Copernicus. On February 19 2010, the IUPAC finally accepted the proposal given by the GSI team for naming element 112 as copernicium. 


Occurrence

Cn is an artificially produced element which is not present in nature. It is because all the isotopes of this chemical element decay very quickly, very short half-lives. Hence, it is not possible that any primordial copernicium could have survived from the beginning of this universe up to now. However, it doesn't mean that no isotopes of this chemical element have longer half-lives. Scientists are making continuous efforts to study this element in more detail. 


Properties of Copernicium

The expensive and limited production of copernicium doesn't allow scientists to study all the characteristics of Cn in detail. Moreover, it decays very quickly, which prevents scientists from measuring their properties accurately. Hence, only predictions are available when it comes to the detailed characteristics of copernicium. Cn is the heaviest member of the group 12 and is the last member of the 6d series in the periodic table of elements. According to the predictions, Cn must be a dense metal which remains in a liquid state at a temperature of 300 K. 

The predicted density of copernicium is 14.0 g/cm3, which is similar to that of mercury. Many experiments predicted that this metal must remain in the gas state at room temperature. Hence, it may be the first gaseous metal known today. The electronic configuration of Cn is 5f14 6d107s2 because of the relative de-stabilization of the 6d orbital and stabilization of the 7s orbital in the copernicium atom. Hence, ions of this element, like Cn+ and Cn2, must give 6d electrons instead of 7s electrons. According to the predictions, the metallic bonds of this chemical element are also weak. Hence, it can be remarkably volatile similar to noble gases. 

The predicted atomic radius of copernicium is around 147pm. In 2007, some scientists predicted that copernicium must be a semiconductor with the energy gap of 0.2eV. However, the calculations made in 2017 found that it is a noble metal and have no energy gap like mercury. The estimated melting point and boiling point of this radioactive chemical element is 283±11 K and 340±10 K, respectively.

FAQs on Copernicium: Key Facts, Properties, and Importance

1. What is Copernicium, and how is it classified in the periodic table?

Copernicium is a synthetic, superheavy chemical element with the symbol Cn and atomic number 112. In the periodic table, it is classified as a transition metal located in Group 12 and Period 7. Due to its position, it is the heaviest known member of the zinc group, which also includes zinc (Zn), cadmium (Cd), and mercury (Hg). However, its properties are predicted to be significantly different from the lighter elements in its group.

2. What are the main physical and chemical properties of Copernicium?

As a highly radioactive element of which only a few atoms have ever been created, the properties of Copernicium are mostly predicted. Key properties include:

  • State: It is expected to be a volatile metal, possibly existing in a gaseous state at or near room temperature, which is unusual for a metal.
  • Radioactivity: All known isotopes of Copernicium are extremely radioactive and unstable, with very short half-lives.
  • Reactivity: It is predicted to be chemically unreactive, behaving more like a noble gas than a typical metal due to strong relativistic effects on its electrons.
  • Appearance: Its color and density are unknown as it has never been produced in bulk quantities.

3. How was Copernicium discovered and named?

Copernicium was first synthesized on February 9, 1996, by a research team led by Sigurd Hofmann at the GSI Helmholtz Centre for Heavy Ion Research in Darmstadt, Germany. They produced it by bombarding a lead-208 target with zinc-70 ions. Before its official naming, it was known by the placeholder name Ununbium (Uub). In 2010, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) officially named it Copernicium (Cn) in honour of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus.

4. What are the practical uses or applications of Copernicium today?

Currently, Copernicium has no practical uses or commercial applications. This is because it is extremely difficult and expensive to produce, and its isotopes are highly unstable with half-lives measured in seconds or milliseconds. Its only significance is in fundamental scientific research, where it helps scientists understand the properties of superheavy elements and test the limits of the periodic table.

5. Why are there no stable isotopes of Copernicium?

There are no stable isotopes of Copernicium because it is a superheavy element. Elements with very high atomic numbers have a large number of protons packed into the nucleus, creating immense electrostatic repulsion. This force overcomes the strong nuclear force that holds the nucleus together, making it inherently unstable. All known Copernicium isotopes, such as the most stable one, Copernicium-285 (with a half-life of about 30 seconds), decay rapidly through processes like alpha decay or spontaneous fission.

6. How does the electron configuration of Copernicium explain its unique predicted properties?

The predicted electron configuration of Copernicium is [Rn] 5f¹⁴ 6d¹⁰ 7s². The key to its properties lies in the filled 6d and 7s subshells. Due to relativistic effects (where electrons in heavy atoms move at speeds close to the speed of light), the 7s electrons are strongly stabilised and held closer to the nucleus. This makes them very difficult to remove for chemical bonding, leading to Copernicium's predicted inertness, similar to a noble gas. This stability also contributes to its high volatility, as the atoms do not interact strongly with each other.

7. How does Copernicium compare to other Group 12 elements like Mercury (Hg)?

While both Copernicium and Mercury are in Group 12, they show significant differences. Mercury is a liquid at room temperature and is relatively volatile for a metal. Copernicium is predicted to take this volatility to an extreme, possibly being a gas. The primary difference is the strength of relativistic effects, which are much more pronounced in Copernicium due to its higher atomic number. This makes Cn far more chemically inert than Hg. In essence, Copernicium can be seen as a heavier, more volatile, and much less reactive version of mercury.