🔹 Basic Information

• Element Name: Rubidium
• Discovered By: Robert Bunsen & Gustav Kirchhoff
• Year of Discovery: 1861
• Category: Alkali Metal
• Group: 1 (Group IA – Alkali Metals)
• State at Room Temperature: Solid (soft, silvery-white metal) ⚪

Rubidium is a highly reactive, soft metal that belongs to the alkali metals group. It’s rarely found in large amounts but is very active chemically, especially with water and air!

🔸 Chemical Properties

• Chemical Symbol: Rb
• Atomic Number: 37
• Atomic Mass: ~85.47 u
• Valency: 1
• Electronic Configuration: [Kr] 5s¹

Rubidium has one electron in its outer shell, making it extremely reactive — just like its alkali metal cousins like sodium and potassium. It can ignite spontaneously in air and reacts violently with water. 💥

📘 Basic Things to Know

Rubidium is never found freely in nature. It’s usually extracted from minerals like lepidolite and pollucite. Because it’s so reactive, it’s stored in mineral oil or sealed containers to prevent it from reacting with air or moisture. 🧴

Its name comes from the Latin word “rubidus”, meaning deep red, due to the red color of its spectral lines.

🤔 Interesting Facts

• Rubidium catches fire in water and even reacts with ice! ❄️🔥
• It’s used in atomic clocks, which are extremely accurate — off by only one second in millions of years. ⏱️
• Rubidium is slightly radioactive, but not dangerous in small amounts.
• It’s one of the softest metals — you can cut it easily with a knife. 🔪
• Rubidium burns with a purple-red flame — beautiful in flame tests! 🔥💜

🔧 Common Uses

• Atomic Clocks: Used in high-precision timekeeping and GPS systems. 🛰️
• Research: Important in physics and chemistry experiments, including quantum studies. 🔬
• Special Glass: Added to some glasses and electronics to improve performance. 🪟
• Medical Imaging: Rubidium isotopes are used in heart imaging scans. 🫀
• Electronics: Used in photoelectric cells and specialized batteries.

📚 Conclusion

Rubidium may not be common in daily life, but it’s a powerful and exciting element that plays a role in high-tech tools, scientific research, and even space and navigation. For students, rubidium shows how even lesser-known elements can have high-impact uses in science and technology. 🌍🔭