Tungsten
The metal with the highest melting point, used in filaments.
Inside the Tungsten 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 Tungsten atom step by step.
Electron configuration
[Xe] 4f14 5d4 6s2
A neutral Tungsten atom has 74 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
- 3695 K (3422 °C)
- Boiling point
- 5828 K (5555 °C)
- Density
- 19.25 g/cm³
- Electronegativity
- 2.36 Pauling
- Atomic radius
- 135 pm
- 1st ionization energy
- 770 kJ/mol
- Category
- Transition metals
Discovery & naming
- Discovered
- 1783
- Discovered by
- Juan José and Fausto Elhuyar
- Origin of name
- Swedish 'tung sten', meaning heavy stone.
Notable uses
Light-bulb filaments, cutting tools, and armour.
Where Tungsten comes from
Several comparable sources
Both slow neutron capture in dying stars and rapid capture in explosive events contribute meaningfully.
Simplified origin map — many elements form through more than one astrophysical pathway.
Summary
- Atomic number
- 74
- Atomic mass
- 183.84
- Category
- Transition metals
- Group · Period
- 6 · 6
- Block
- d-block
- Shells
- 2 · 8 · 18 · 32 · 12 · 2