Cerium
lanthanide · period 6 · group 3 · f-block
Cerium is a chemical element with the symbol Ce and atomic number 58. Cerium is a soft, ductile, and silvery-white metal that tarnishes when exposed to air, and it is soft enough to be cut with a steel kitchen knife.
What the numbers say
At standard temperature and pressure Cerium is a solid, sitting in period 6, group 3 of the f-block.
Its melting point of 1068 K (795 °C) is the 63rd highest of the 110 elements with a measured value — mid-range among the elements.
At 6.689 g/cm³ it is the 52nd densest of 96 elements with a quoted density.
Pauling electronegativity is 1.12. Paired with oxygen (3.44) that is a difference of 2.32, which puts the bond predominantly ionic — expect a stable oxide ceramic.
In the solid state it takes a simple hexagonal structure — hexagonal packing offers few easy slip systems, so properties are anisotropic and formability is limited.
It is reported in 3 oxidation states (2, 3, 4), which sets how many distinct compounds and phases it can form.
First identified in 1803.
Crystal structure
Solid Cerium adopts a Simple Hexagonal arrangement, in the Hexagonal system — axes a = b ≠ c, angles α = β = 90°, γ = 120°. Symmetry controls the anisotropy of stiffness and thermal expansion, and the available slip systems set how far the metal deforms before it fractures.
Check it against computed structures
The structure search queries the Materials Project, OQMD and the Open Materials Database for computed crystal structures containing Ce — with DFT formation energy, hull stability and band gap where the provider publishes them.
K 2 · L 8 · M 18 · N 19 · O 9 · P 2
Properties
| Atomic number | 58 |
|---|---|
| Atomic mass | 140.1161 u |
| Series | lanthanide |
| Group | 3 |
| Period | 6 |
| Block | f-block |
| Phase at STP | Solid |
| Density | 6.689 g/cm³ |
| Melting point | 1068 K (795 °C) |
| Boiling point | 3716 K (3443 °C) |
| Electronegativity (Pauling) | 1.12 |
| Electron configuration | [Xe] 4f¹ 5d¹ 6s² |
| Crystal structure | Simple Hexagonal |
| Oxidation states | 2,3,4 |
| Discovered | 1803 |
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See Ce in context with all 118 elements.
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