Polonium
A rare, intensely radioactive metal discovered by the Curies.
Inside the Polonium atom
Switch between Bohr and Quantum Cloud modes to compare a simple teaching model with a more realistic probability-based view, and follow the guided tour to explore the Polonium atom step by step.
Electron configuration
[Xe] 4f14 5d10 6s2 6p4
A neutral Polonium atom has 84 electrons (equal to its proton count). Choosing a different isotope above changes only the neutron count.
Shell distribution
Electrons fill inner shells before outer ones; the outermost (valence) shell drives the element's chemistry.
Physical & atomic properties
- State (room temp)
- Solid
- Melting point
- 527 K (254 °C)
- Boiling point
- 1235 K (962 °C)
- Density
- 9.32 g/cm³
- Electronegativity
- 2 Pauling
- Atomic radius
- 190 pm
- 1st ionization energy
- 812 kJ/mol
- Category
- Post-transition metals
Discovery & naming
- Discovered
- 1898
- Discovered by
- Marie and Pierre Curie
- Origin of name
- Poland, Marie Curie's homeland.
Notable uses
Antistatic brushes and compact heat sources.
Where Polonium comes from
Neutron star mergers
Occurs on Earth only as a fleeting decay product of uranium and thorium, so it inherits their r-process origin.
Simplified origin map — many elements form through more than one astrophysical pathway.
Summary
- Atomic number
- 84
- Atomic mass
- [209]
- Category
- Post-transition metals
- Group · Period
- 16 · 6
- Block
- p-block
- Shells
- 2 · 8 · 18 · 32 · 18 · 6