Very-pure gallium has a stunning silvery color and its solid metal fractures conchoidaly[?] like glass. Gallium metal expands 3.1 percent when it solidifys and therefore shouldn't be stored in either glass or metal containers. Gallium also corrodes most other metals by diffusing into their metal lattice.
Gallium is one of four metals (with cesium, mercury, and rubidium) which are liquid at near normal room temperature and can therefore be used in high-temperature thermometers. It is also notable for having one of the largest liquid ranges for a metal and for having a low vapor pressure at high temperatures.
This metal has a strong tendency supercool below its melting point thus necessitating seeding in order to solidify. High-purity gallium is attacked slowly by mineral acids[?].
The melting point temperature is very low, T=30 °C, and the density is higher in the liquid state than in the crystalline state (like in the case of water; the opposite effect is normally found for metals).
Ga doesn't crystallize in any of the simple crystal structures. The stable phase under normal conditions is orthorhombic[?] with 8 atoms in the conventional unit cell. Each atom has only one nearest neighbor (at a distance of 2.44 Å) and six other neighbors within additional 0.39 Å. Many stable and metastable phases are found as function of temperature and pressure.
The bonding between the nearest neighbors is found to be of covalent[?] character, hence Ga2 dimers is seen as the fundamental building block of the crystal. The compound, gallium arsenide can convert electricity directly into coherent light (this property is vital to light-emitting diodes).
Analog integrated circuits are the largest application for gallium, with optoelectronic devices (mostly laser diodes and light-emitting diodes) as the second largest end use. Other uses;
Since it wets glass or porcelain, gallium is used to create brilliant mirrors.
Gallium (LatinGallia meaning "France"; also gallus, meaning "cock") was discovered spectroscopically by Lecoq de Boisbaudran[?] in 1875 by its characteristic spectrum (two violet lines) in an examination of a zinc blende from the Pyrenees. Before its discovery, most of its properties had been predicted and described by Dmitri Mendeleev (whom called the hypothetical element eka-aluminum) on the basis of the periodic law[?]. Later in 1875, Boisbaudran obtained the free metal through the electrolysis hydroxide in KOH solution. He named the element after his native land of France and, in one of those multilingual puns so beloved of men of science of the early 19th century, after himself, as 'Lecoq' = the rooster, and Latin for rooster is "gallus".
This true metal is oftentimes found as a trace component in bauxite, coal, diaspore[?], germanite, and sphalerite. Some flue dusts from burning coal have been shown to contain as much 1.5 percent gallium.
only, from time to time, the boom of the great cannon swept sullenly
spend itself in a few hours' fury, they were mistaken. In a day or
buildings. Then the Austrians poured forth.html">forth in bright flaming array,
fierce mob were no more to them then the swarms of buzzing summer
terrible effect; but in the place of one slain rioter, three sprang
of the Austrians, was at work. Food, scarce and dear for months, was
made to bring provisions into the city, for the rioters had friends
struggle took place. I was there, helping the rioters, whose cause I
fell on both sides: I saw them lie bleeding for a moment: then a
dead--trampled upon or smothered, pressed down and hidden by the
gray-robed and grey-veiled figure came right.html">right across the flashing.html">flashing guns
sometimes it was to give him drink from cans which they carried slung
rapid prayers were being uttered, unheard by men in that hellish din
dream: the reality of that stern.html">stern time was battle and carnage. But I
their faces hidden by their veils, were the Poor Clares--sent forth
Therefore, they left their cloistered shelter, and came into that
the Antwerp burgess with the scarce-healed scar upon his face; and in
Gisborne, and ere either had recovered the shock, the burgess had
with redoubled fury. He had struck him hard--the Englishman was
herself right under the uplifted flashing sword. The burgess's arm
Poor Clares.
"Leave him to me!" said a low stern voice. "He is mine.html">mine enemy--mine
bullet. I remember nothing more for days. When I came to myself, I
my strength. My landlord sat watching me. He, too, looked pinched
.
On
wordlookup.net
All is still licensed under the GNU FDL.
It uses material from the wikipedia.
