What is Copernicium Atomic Number Electron Configuration Properties and Uses
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.
(Image to be added soon)
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.
(Image to be added soon)
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 Element Properties Structure and Periodic Position
1. What is copernicium?
Copernicium is a synthetic radioactive chemical element with the symbol Cn and atomic number 112. It is a superheavy element in the periodic table and belongs to group 12, below zinc (Zn), cadmium (Cd), and mercury (Hg). Key facts about copernicium include:
- It does not occur naturally and must be produced in a laboratory.
- All known isotopes are highly unstable and radioactive.
- It was named after the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus.
2. What is the atomic number of copernicium?
The atomic number of copernicium is 112. The atomic number represents the number of protons in the nucleus of a copernicium atom. This means:
- Every copernicium atom contains 112 protons.
- A neutral copernicium atom has 112 electrons.
- It is placed in period 7 and group 12 of the periodic table.
3. Is copernicium a metal or nonmetal?
Copernicium is classified as a metal, specifically a group 12 transition metal. Based on its position in the periodic table and theoretical predictions:
- It is expected to have properties similar to mercury (Hg).
- Relativistic effects may make it behave more like a very volatile metal.
- It is sometimes described as a highly volatile or possibly noble-metal-like element due to predicted weak metallic bonding.
4. How is copernicium produced?
Copernicium is produced by nuclear fusion reactions in particle accelerators. It is typically synthesized by bombarding a heavy target nucleus with a lighter ion. For example:
- 208Pb + 70Zn → 277Cn + 1n
In this reaction, a lead-208 nucleus is fused with a zinc-70 nucleus to form copernicium-277 and one neutron (n). The process requires extremely high energies and produces only a few atoms at a time.
5. Why is copernicium radioactive?
Copernicium is radioactive because its nucleus is extremely large and unstable. With 112 protons, the strong electrostatic repulsion between positively charged protons makes the nucleus unstable. As a result:
- All isotopes of copernicium undergo radioactive decay.
- Most decay by alpha decay, emitting a helium nucleus (4He).
- Their half-lives are very short, often measured in milliseconds to seconds.
6. What is the electron configuration of copernicium?
The predicted ground-state electron configuration of copernicium is [Rn] 5f14 6d10 7s2. This configuration shows:
- A filled 6d subshell (6d10).
- Two electrons in the 7s orbital (7s2).
- Similarity to other group 12 elements such as Zn, Cd, and Hg.
Relativistic effects significantly influence its electron structure due to its very high atomic number.
7. What are the common oxidation states of copernicium?
The most stable and expected oxidation state of copernicium is +2. As a group 12 element:
- It is predicted to form Cn2+ ions.
- The +2 oxidation state corresponds to the loss of two 7s electrons.
- Higher oxidation states are considered unlikely due to strong relativistic stabilization of its electrons.
8. What is the most stable isotope of copernicium?
The most stable known isotope of copernicium is copernicium-285 (285Cn). This isotope:
- Has a half-life on the order of tens of seconds.
- Is significantly more stable than lighter copernicium isotopes.
- Provides evidence for the predicted “island of stability” in superheavy elements.
9. Where is copernicium found in nature?
Copernicium is not found in nature and exists only as a laboratory-synthesized element. Because:
- It has a very short half-life.
- It decays rapidly into lighter elements.
- Any primordial copernicium would have decayed billions of years ago.
Therefore, copernicium can only be studied in controlled nuclear research facilities.
10. What are the uses of copernicium?
Copernicium has no practical commercial uses and is used only for scientific research. Its importance lies in:
- Studying the chemistry of superheavy elements.
- Investigating nuclear stability and the island of stability.
- Understanding relativistic effects on electron configuration and bonding.
Because only a few atoms are produced at a time, its applications are limited to advanced nuclear and physical chemistry research.
