Neodymium (Nd)

Silvery white

Neodymium makes the strongest permanent magnets ever created, found in every headphone and hard drive, and with four unpaired 4f electrons, Nd₂Fe₁₄B magnets produce the highest energy product (512 kJ/m³) of any permanent magnet. Neodymium-doped lasers (Nd:YAG) are among the most widely used solid-state lasers.

Key metrics

Density7.01g/cm³

Melting point1,297K

Boiling point3,347K

Electronegativity1.14Pauling

Discovery

1885discovered

Discovered by: Carl Auer von Welsbach
Reactivity profile: Reactive rare earth metal
Reactivity: High
Bonding: Metallic

Electron configuration

\textcolor{#6b7280}{[Xe]}\; \textcolor{#a855f7}{4_{f}^{4}}\; \textcolor{#ef4444}{6_{s}^{2}}

[Xe] 4f4 6s2

Wave function

\Psi_{\text{Nd}} \approx \frac{1}{\sqrt{60!}} \det \left| \chi_1(\mathbf{r}_1) \dots \chi_{60}(\mathbf{r}_{60}) \right|

Probability density $|\Psi|^2$ across the Nd valence shell.

Crystal structure

Double Hexagonal Close-Packed

Lattice constantsa 1.00 · b 1.00 · c 2.00

Cell anglesα 90° · β 90° · γ 120°

Coordination number12

Atoms per cell4

Atomic packing factor0.74

Physical properties

Atomic radius: 181 pm
Ionization energy: 533 kJ/mol
Electron affinity: 50 kJ/mol
Crystal structure: Double hexagonal close-packed (dhcp)

Oxidation states

Acid/base

Basic

Strongly acidicStrongly basic

State at 25 °CSolid

1297 K3347 K298 K

Emission spectrum

4 transitions

380450500550600650700780

VioletBlueGreenYellowRed

519.3nmNd I (green)Green60%

529.0nmNd I (green)Green100%

531.1nmNd IGreen80%

579.7nmNd I (yellow)Yellow40%

Dominant line 529.0 nmRange 519–580 nmTransitions 4