Americium (Am)
"The Silent Sentinel, glowing softly from the shadows, always on guard to warn of danger, harnessing unseen power for our protection."
A memorable persona to anchor Am in your mind.
13.67
Grams per cm³
1176
Celsius (°C)
244
Radius (pm)
Daily Life Link
That tiny but mighty component inside your home's smoke detector, keeping you safe.
Discovery & History
Year Discovered
1944
Discovered By
Glenn Seaborg and colleagues
Origin of Name
"Americium is named for America where it was first made."
Technical Properties
Atomic Mass
[243] u
Standard State
solid
Boiling Point
2011°C
Electron Configuration
[Rn] 5f77s2
1st Ionization Energy
5.993 eV
Electron Affinity
N/A
Oxidation States
"A gleaming, silvery metal that secretly glows in the dark with its own radioactive light."
Did You Know?
Man-Made Marvel: Forget digging it up! Americium is a *synthetic* superstar, meaning brilliant scientists cooked it up in a lab – it doesn't naturally exist on Earth!
Secret Agent Discovery: It burst onto the scene during World War II at the top-secret Manhattan Project in Chicago (1944). Its existence was a closely guarded secret for years!
USA! USA! Element! Just like Europium is named after Europe, Americium proudly bears the name of the Americas, a nod to where it was first created.
Your Life Saver's Secret: The absolute coolest thing about Americium-241? It's the tiny but mighty hero inside most household *smoke detectors*, constantly scanning the air for danger.