astatine

Thân thiện

A scientist carefully handles a sealed vial containing astatine in a secure laboratory.

Definition

Noun: 1. A highly unstable radioactive chemical element: Astatine is a synthetic element that is radioactive and decays rapidly. It is the heaviest known member of the halogen group in the periodic table. 2. A decay product: It occurs naturally in minute quantities as an intermediate decay product of uranium and thorium.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Astatine is so rare that scientists typically study it by creating it in particle accelerators.
  • The most stable isotope of astatine has a half-life of only about 8 hours.

Advanced Usage

• Chemical Symbol: The chemical symbol for astatine is At.
  • The compound was tagged with At-211 for the experimental treatment.
• In Research: Due to its radioactivity and rarity, astatine is primarily of scientific research interest, particularly in nuclear medicine.
  • Researchers are investigating astatine-211 for use in targeted alpha-particle therapy for cancer.

Variants and Related Words

• Halogen (noun): Any of the five chemically related elements in Group 17 of the periodic table (fluorine, chlorine, bromine, iodine, astatine). Astatine is a halogen.
• Radioisotope (noun): A radioactive isotope. Astatine-211 is a medically significant radioisotope.

Synonyms

• Element 85: A synonym referring to its atomic number.
• (There are no common true synonyms for specific element names like .)

Notes on Meaning

This word has a single, specific scientific meaning as the name of a chemical element. It is not used in idiomatic expressions or phrasal verbs.

Học thuật

Noun

1. a highly unstable radioactive element (the heaviest of the halogen series); a decay product of uranium and thorium

Từ đồng nghĩa

• At
• atomic number 85