Crossword clues for rubidium
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Rubidium \Ru*bid"i*um\, n. [NL., fr. L. rubidus red, fr. rubere to be red. So called from two dark red spectroscopic lines by means of which it was discovered in the lepidolite from Rozena, Moravi
See Rubicund.] (Chem.) A rare metallic element of the alkali metal series, atomic number 37. It occurs quite widely, but in small quantities, and always combined. It is isolated as a soft yellowish white metal, analogous to potassium in most of its properties. Symbol R
Atomic weight, 85.48.
Wiktionary
n. A metallic chemical element (''symbol'' Rb) with an atomic number of 37.
WordNet
n. a soft silvery metallic element of the alkali metal group; burns in air and reacts violently in water; occurs in carnallite and lepidolite and pollucite [syn: Rb, atomic number 37]
Wikipedia
Rubidium is a chemical element with symbol Rb and atomic number 37. Rubidium is a soft, silvery-white metallic element of the alkali metal group, with an atomic mass of 85.4678. Elemental rubidium is highly reactive, with properties similar to those of other alkali metals, including rapid oxidation in air. On Earth, natural rubidium comprises two isotopes: 72% is the stable isotope, Rb; 28% is the slightly radioactive Rb, with a half-life of 49 billion years—more than three times longer than the estimated age of the universe.
German chemists Robert Bunsen and Gustav Kirchhoff discovered rubidium in 1861 by the newly developed technique, flame spectroscopy.
Rubidium's compounds have various chemical and electronic applications. Rubidium metal is easily vaporized and has a convenient spectral absorption range, making it a frequent target for laser manipulation of atoms.
Rubidium is not a known nutrient for any living organisms. However, rubidium ions have the same charge as potassium ions, and are actively taken up and treated by animal cells in similar ways.
Usage examples of "rubidium".
On the other hand, the leaves which had been immersed in the solutions of the chloride of rubidium and magnesium, of acetate of strontium, nitrate of barium, and citric acid, were quickly acted on by the phosphate.
Because of all of these technological hurdles, it wasn't until 1995 that experimenters were able to force rubidium atoms to form this type of condensate.
Popular choices for these bosons include specific isotopes of atoms of helium, sodium, rubidium, and hydrogen.
The initial method of making a rubidium condensate is the most straightforward, and further methods have been refinements of the same general principles of cooling.
Of all the materials used, rubidium was the easiest to make into a BEC because its atoms are the largest—they achieve low velocities at the highest temperature (energy) because mass relates to energy (hydrogen was the hardest BEC to form, but researchers think it may have superior applications because of its small size).