Index

Indium ( In )

Material Information

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General Description:  

Discovered in 1863 by F. Reich and H. Richter in Freiberg, Germany.

Indium derives its name from the characteristic indigo line in its spectrum. It is a soft, malleable and ductile metal which is generally unaffected by air or water but is soluble in acids. It is found only in the form of minor components of various minerals (as are gallium and thallium, other members of the boron group of elements in the periodic table) and the pure element is produced by electrolytic reduction in aqueous solution. It has an abundance in the earth's crust of 0.049 ppm.

Indium has a large cross-section for slow neutrons and is, therefore, readily activated. Indium is used in the forms of InAs and InSb within the semiconductor industry in thermistors and transistors. As a result of its physical properties, it is particularly suited to being used as a sealing material in vacuum systems and also as bonding material in acoustic transducers. Indium is also widely used in the manufacture of "fusible" materials, a range of alloys which have low melting points and can be used as thermal fuses and solders.
   

Atomic Properties		      
Atomic number 49
Atomic radius - Goldschmidt ( nm ) 0.157
Atomic weight ( amu ) 114.82
Crystal structure Face centred tetragonal
Electronic structure Kr 4d1O 5s2 5p1
Ionisation potential No. eV
1 5.79
2 18.9
3 28.0
4 54
Natural isotope distribution Mass No. %
113 4.3
115 95.7
Photo-electric work function ( eV ) 4.12
Thermal neutron absorption cross-section ( Barns ) 194
Valences shown 1, 2, 3

Electrical Properties		      
Electrical resistivity @20C ( µOhmcm ) 8.8
Temperature coefficient @0-100C ( K-1 ) 0.0052
Superconductivity critical temperature ( K ) 3.41
Thermal emf against Pt (cold 0C - hot 100C) ( mV ) +0.69

Mechanical Properties		      
Material condition Soft Polycrystalline
Bulk modulus ( GPa ) 35.3
Hardness - Vickers <10
Poisson's ratio 0.45
Tensile modulus ( GPa ) 10.6
Tensile strength ( MPa ) 2.6-4.5

Physical Properties		      
Boiling point ( C ) 2080
Density @20C ( g cm-3 ) 7.3
Melting point ( C ) 156.6

Thermal Properties		      
Coefficient of thermal expansion @0-100C ( x10-6 K-1 ) 24.8
Latent heat of evaporation ( J g-1 ) 2024
Latent heat of fusion ( J g-1 ) 28.5
Specific heat @25C ( J K-1 kg-1 ) 234
Thermal conductivity @0-100C ( W m-1 K-1 ) 81.8


All information and technical data are given as a guide only. Although every effort has been made to ensure that the information is correct, no warranty is given as to its completeness or accuracy.
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