Caesium is a soft, silvery-gold alkali metal with a melting point of 28.5 °C, which makes it one of only five elemental metals that are liquid at or near room temperature. Caesium has physical and chemical properties similar to those of rubidium and potassium.
Protons and Neutrons in Caesium
Caesium is a chemical element with atomic number 55 which means there are 55 protons in its nucleus. Total number of protons in the nucleus is called the atomic number of the atom and is given the symbol Z. The total electrical charge of the nucleus is therefore +Ze, where e (elementary charge) equals to 1,602 x 10-19 coulombs.
The total number of neutrons in the nucleus of an atom is called the neutron number of the atom and is given the symbol N. Neutron number plus atomic number equals atomic mass number: N+Z=A. The difference between the neutron number and the atomic number is known as the neutron excess: D = N – Z = A – 2Z.
For stable elements, there is usually a variety of stable isotopes. Isotopes are nuclides that have the same atomic number and are therefore the same element, but differ in the number of neutrons. Mass numbers of typical isotopes of Caesium are 78.
Main Isotopes of Caesium
Caesium occurs in 2 natural isotopes: 133Cs and 135Cs. 135Cs is very slightly radioactive, decaying by beta decay with a half-life of 2.3×106 years and occurs only in traces. 133Cs is the most common isotope, having a natural abundance of approximately 100%.
Caesium-133 is composed of 55 protons, 78 neutrons, and 55 electrons.
Caesium-135 is composed of 55 protons, 80 neutrons, and 55 electrons.
Electrons and Electron Configuration
The number of electrons in an electrically-neutral atom is the same as the number of protons in the nucleus. Therefore, the number of electrons in neutral atom of Caesium is 55. Each electron is influenced by the electric fields produced by the positive nuclear charge and the other (Z – 1) negative electrons in the atom.
Since the number of electrons and their arrangement are responsible for the chemical behavior of atoms, the atomic number identifies the various chemical elements. The configuration of these electrons follows from the principles of quantum mechanics. The number of electrons in each element’s electron shells, particularly the outermost valence shell, is the primary factor in determining its chemical bonding behavior. In the periodic table, the elements are listed in order of increasing atomic number Z.
Electron configuration of Caesium is [Xe] 6s1.
Possible oxidation states are +1.
Most Common Application of Caesium
The largest present-day use of nonradioactive caesium is in caesium formate drilling fluids for the extractive oil industry. Cesium formate is the heaviest of the monovalent alkali metal salts, all of which are very soluble in water and form high density fluids with a range of beneficial properties.
|Number of protons||55|
|Number of neutrons (typical isotopes)||78|
|Number of electrons||55|
|Electron configuration||[Xe] 6s1|
Properties of other elements