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In Indium
Element Information, Facts, Properties, Trends, Uses, Comparison with other elements

49
In
Indium
Element 49 of Periodic table is Indium with atomic number 49, atomic weight 114.818. Indium, symbol In, has a Centered Tetragonal structure and Silver color. Indium is a Post Transition Metal element. It is part of group 13 (boron family). Know everything about Indium Facts, Physical Properties, Chemical Properties, Electronic configuration, Atomic and Crystal Structure.
49 In - Indium | SchoolMyKids

Indium is a chemical element with symbol In and atomic number 49. It is a post-transition metallic element that is rare in Earth's crust. The metal is very soft, malleable and easily fusible, with a melting point higher than sodium, but lower than lithium or tin.

It belongs to group 13 of the periodic table having trivial name triels, icosagens. You can also download Printable Periodic Table of Elements Flashcards for Indium in a PDF format.

Indium Facts

Read key information and facts about element Indium

NameIndium
Atomic Number49
Atomic SymbolIn
Atomic Weight114.818
PhaseSolid
ColorSilver
Appearancesilvery lustrous gray
ClassificationPost Transition Metal
Natural OccurancePrimordial
Group in Periodic Table13
Group Nameboron family
Period in Periodic Tableperiod 5
Block in Periodic Tablep-block
Electronic Configuration[Kr] 4d10 5s2 5p1
Electronic Shell Structure (Electrons per shell)2, 8, 18, 18, 3
Melting Point429.75 K
Boiling Point2345 K
CAS NumberCAS7440-74-6
123456789101112131415161718
1
1
H
Hydrogen
1.008

Atomic #

Electronic Shell #

Symbol
Name
Atomic Weight
HGas
HgLiquid
CSolid
Metals
Metalloids
NonMetals
Alkali metals
Alkali earth metals
Lanthanoids
Transition metals
Post-transition metals
Other nonmetals
Halogens
Nobel gas
Actinoids
2
He
Helium
4.003
2
3
Li
Lithium
6.941
4
Be
Beryllium
9.012
5
B
Boron
10.811
6
C
Carbon
12.011
7
N
Nitrogen
14.007
8
O
Oxygen
15.999
9
F
Fluorine
18.998
10
Ne
Neon
20.180
3
11
Na
Sodium
22.990
12
Mg
Magnesium
24.305
13
Al
Aluminium
26.982
14
Si
Silicon
28.085
15
P
Phosphorus
30.974
16
S
Sulfur
32.065
17
Cl
Chlorine
35.453
18
Ar
Argon
39.948
4
19
K
Potassium
39.098
20
Ca
Calcium
40.078
21
Sc
Scandium
44.956
22
Ti
Titanium
47.867
23
V
Vanadium
50.941
24
Cr
Chromium
51.996
25
Mn
Manganese
54.938
26
Fe
Iron
55.845
27
Co
Cobalt
58.933
28
Ni
Nickel
58.693
29
Cu
Copper
63.546
30
Zn
Zinc
65.409
31
Ga
Gallium
69.723
32
Ge
Germanium
72.640
33
As
Arsenic
74.922
34
Se
Selenium
78.960
35
Br
Bromine
79.904
36
Kr
Krypton
83.798
5
37
Rb
Rubidium
85.468
38
Sr
Strontium
87.620
39
Y
Yttrium
88.906
40
Zr
Zirconium
91.224
41
Nb
Niobium
92.906
42
Mo
Molybdenum
95.940
43
Tc
Technetium
98
44
Ru
Ruthenium
101.070
45
Rh
Rhodium
102.906
46
Pd
Palladium
106.420
47
Ag
Silver
107.868
48
Cd
Cadmium
112.411
49
In
Indium
114.818
50
Sn
Tin
118.710
51
Sb
Antimony
121.760
52
Te
Tellurium
127.600
53
I
Iodine
126.904
54
Xe
Xenon
131.293
6
55
Cs
Cesium
132.905
56
Ba
Barium
137.327
57 - 71
La - Lu
Lanthanides
72
Hf
Hafnium
178.490
73
Ta
Tantalum
180.948
74
W
Tungsten
183.840
75
Re
Rhenium
186.207
76
Os
Osmium
190.230
77
Ir
Iridium
192.217
78
Pt
Platinum
195.078
79
Au
Gold
196.967
80
Hg
Mercury
200.590
81
Tl
Thallium
204.383
82
Pb
Lead
207.200
83
Bi
Bismuth
208.980
84
Po
Polonium
209
85
At
Astatine
210
86
Rn
Radon
222
7
87
Fr
Francium
223
88
Ra
Radium
226
89 - 103
Ac - Lr
Actinides
104
Rf
Rutherfordium
261
105
Db
Dubnium
262
106
Sg
Seaborgium
266
107
Bh
Bohrium
264
108
Hs
Hassium
269
109
Mt
Meitnerium
268
110
Ds
Darmstadtium
281
111
Rg
Roentgenium
272
112
Cn
Copernicium
285
113
Nh
Nihonium
284
114
Fl
Flerovium
289
115
Mc
Moscovium
288
116
Lv
Livermorium
292
117
Ts
Tennessine
294
118
Og
Oganesson
294
Lanthanides
57
La
Lanthanum
138.905
58
Ce
Cerium
140.116
59
Pr
Praseodymium
140.908
60
Nd
Neodymium
144.240
61
Pm
Promethium
145
62
Sm
Samarium
150.360
63
Eu
Europium
151.964
64
Gd
Gadolinium
157.250
65
Tb
Terbium
158.925
66
Dy
Dysprosium
162.500
67
Ho
Holmium
164.930
68
Er
Erbium
167.259
69
Tm
Thulium
168.934
70
Yb
Ytterbium
173.040
71
Lu
Lutetium
174.967
Actinides
89
Ac
Actinium
227
90
Th
Thorium
232.038
91
Pa
Protactinium
231.036
92
U
Uranium
238.029
93
Np
Neptunium
237
94
Pu
Plutonium
244
95
Am
Americium
243
96
Cm
Curium
247
97
Bk
Berkelium
247
98
Cf
Californium
251
99
Es
Einsteinium
252
100
Fm
Fermium
257
101
Md
Mendelevium
258
102
No
Nobelium
259
103
Lr
Lawrencium
262

How to Locate Indium on Periodic Table

Periodic table is arranged by atomic number, number of protons in the nucleus which is same as number of electrons. The atomic number increases from left to right. Periodic table starts at top left ( Atomic number 1) and ends at bottom right (atomic number 118). Therefore you can directly look for atomic number 49 to find Indium on periodic table.

Another way to read periodic table and locate an element is by using group number (column) and period number (row). To locate Indium on periodic table look for cross section of group 13 and period 5 in the modern periodic table.

Indium History

The element Indium was discovered by F. Reich and T. Richter in year 1863 in Germany. Indium was first isolated by T. Richter in 1867. Indium derived its name from indigo.

Discovered By F. Reich and T. Richter
Discovery Date 1863 in Germany
First Isolation 1867
Isolated by T. Richter

Reich and Richter First identified it in sphalerite by its bright indigo-blue spectroscopic emission line. Richter isolated the metal several years later.

Indium Uses

Indium is majorly used as a doping agent for germanium in the transistor manufacturing process. It is also used to make highly reflective mirrors and low-melting-point alloys.

Indium Presence: Abundance in Nature and Around Us

The table below shows the abundance of Indium in Universe, Sun, Meteorites, Earth's Crust, Oceans and Human Body.

 ppb by weight (1ppb =10^-7 %)ppb by atoms (1ppb =10^-7 %)
Abundance in Universe0.30.003
Abundance in Sun40.04
Abundance in Meteorites4510
Abundance in Earth's Crust16030
Abundance in Oceans0.00010.000005
Abundance in Humans--

Crystal Structure of Indium

The solid state structure of Indium is Centered Tetragonal.

The Crystal structure can be described in terms of its unit Cell. The unit Cells repeats itself in three dimensional space to form the structure.

Unit Cell Parameters

The unit cell is represented in terms of its lattice parameters, which are the lengths of the cell edges Lattice Constants (a, b and c)

abc
325.23 pm325.23 pm494.61 pm

and the angles between them Lattice Angles (alpha, beta and gamma).

alphabetagamma
π/2 π/2 π/2

The positions of the atoms inside the unit cell are described by the set of atomic positions ( xi, yi, zi) measured from a reference lattice point.

The symmetry properties of the crystal are described by the concept of space groups. All possible symmetric arrangements of particles in three-dimensional space are described by the 230 space groups (219 distinct types, or 230 if chiral copies are considered distinct.

Space Group NameI4/mmm
Space Group Number139
Crystal StructureCentered Tetragonal
Number of atoms per unit cell
49 In Indium - Crystal Structure | SchoolMyKids

The number of atoms per unit cell in a simple cubic, face-centered cubic and body-centred cubic are 1,4,2 respectively.

Indium Atomic and Orbital Properties

Indium atoms have 49 electrons and the electronic shell structure is [2, 8, 18, 18, 3] with Atomic Term Symbol (Quantum Numbers) 2P1/2.

Atomic Number49
Number of Electrons (with no charge)49
Number of Protons49
Mass Number115
Number of Neutrons66
Shell structure (Electrons per energy level)2, 8, 18, 18, 3
Electron Configuration[Kr] 4d10 5s2 5p1
Valence Electrons5s2 5p1
Valence (Valency)3
Main Oxidation States3
Oxidation States-5, -2, -1, 1, 2, 3
Atomic Term Symbol (Quantum Numbers)2P1/2

Bohr Atomic Model of Indium - Electrons per energy level

49 In Indium Electron Shell Structure | SchoolMyKids
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Ground State Electronic Configuration of Indium - neutral Indium atom

Abbreviated electronic configuration of Indium

The ground state abbreviated electronic configuration of Neutral Indium atom is [Kr] 4d10 5s2 5p1. The portion of Indium configuration that is equivalent to the noble gas of the preceding period, is abbreviated as [Kr]. For atoms with many electrons, this notation can become lengthy and so an abbreviated notation is used. This is important as it is the Valence electrons 5s2 5p1, electrons in the outermost shell that determine the chemical properties of the element.

Unabbreviated electronic configuration of neutral Indium

Complete ground state electronic configuration for the Indium atom, Unabbreviated electronic configuration

1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d10 4s2 4p6 4d10 5s2 5p1

Electrons are filled in atomic orbitals as per the order determined by the Aufbau principle, Pauli Exclusion Principle and Hund’s Rule.

  • As per the Aufbau principle the electrons will occupy the orbitals having lower energies before occupying higher energy orbitals. According to this principle, electrons are filled in the following order: 1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p, 4s, 3d, 4p, 5s, 4d, 5p, 6s, 4f, 5d, 6p, 7s, 5f, 6d, 7p…
  • The Pauli exclusion principle states that a maximum of two electrons, each having opposite spins, can fit in an orbital.
  • Hund's rule states that every orbital in a given subshell is singly occupied by electrons before a second electron is filled in an orbital.
  • Electron configuration of Indium
    Atomic Structure of Indium

    Indium atomic radius is 156 pm, while it's covalent radius is 144 pm.

    Atomic Radius Calculated

    156 pm(1.56 Å)

    Atomic Radius Empirical

    155 pm (1.55 Å)

    Atomic Volume15.707 cm3/mol
    Covalent Radius144 pm (1.44 Å)
    Van der Waals Radius193 pm
    Neutron Cross Section194
    Neutron Mass Absorption 0.06

    Spectral Lines of Indium - Atomic Spectrum of Indium

    A spectral line is a dark or bright line in an otherwise uniform and continuous spectrum, resulting from an excess or deficiency of photons in a narrow frequency range, compared with the nearby frequencies. Spectral lines are often used to identify atoms and molecules.

    Spectral lines are the result of interaction between a quantum system and a single photon. A spectral line may be observed either as an emission line or an absorption line.

    Spectral lines are highly atom-specific, and can be used to identify the chemical composition of any medium. Several elements, including helium, thallium, and caesium, were discovered by spectroscopic means. They are widely used to determine the physical conditions of stars and other celestial bodies that cannot be analyzed by other means.

    Emission spectrum of Indium

    Emission Spectrum of Indium | SchoolMyKids

    Absorption spectrum of Indium

    Absorption Spectrum of Indium | SchoolMyKids

    Indium Chemical Properties: Indium Ionization Energies and electron affinity

    The electron affinity of Indium is 28.9 kJ/mol.

    Valence3
    Electronegativity1.78
    ElectronAffinity28.9 kJ/mol

    Ionization Energy of Indium

    Ionization energy is the amount of energy required to remove an electron from an atom or molecule.in chemistry, this energy is expresed in kilocalories per mole (kcal/mol) or kilojoules per mole (kJ/mol).

    Refer to table below for Ionization energies of Indium

    Ionization energy numberEnthalpy - kJ/mol
    1st558.3
    2nd1820.7
    3rd2704
    4th5210

    Indium Physical Properties

    Refer to below table for Indium Physical Properties

    Density7.31 g/cm3(when liquid at m.p density is $7.02 g/cm3)
    Molar Volume15.707 cm3/mol

    Elastic Properties

    Young Modulus11
    Shear Modulus-
    Bulk Modulus -
    Poisson Ratio-

    Hardness of Indium - Tests to Measure of Hardness of Element

    Mohs Hardness1.2 MPa
    Vickers Hardness-
    Brinell Hardness8.83 MPa

    Indium Electrical Properties

    Electrical resistivity measures element's electrical resistance or how strongly it resists electric current.The SI unit of electrical resistivity is the ohm-metre (Ω⋅m). While Electrical conductivity is the reciprocal of electrical resistivity. It represents a element's ability to conduct electric current. The SI unit of electrical conductivity is siemens per metre (S/m).

    Indium is a conductor of electricity. Refer to table below for the Electrical properties of Indium

    Electrical conductors Conductor
    Electrical Conductivity12000000 S/m
    Resistivity8e-8 m Ω
    Superconducting Point3.41

    Indium Heat and Conduction Properties

    Thermal Conductivity82 W/(m K)
    Thermal Expansion0.0000321 /K

    Indium Magnetic Properties

    Magnetic TypeDiamagnetic
    Curie Point-
    Mass Magnetic Susceptibility-1.4e-9 m3/kg
    Molar Magnetic Susceptibility-1.61e-10 m3/mol
    Volume Magnetic Susceptibility-0.0000102

    Optical Properties of Indium

    Refractive Index-

    Acoustic Properties of Indium

    Speed of Sound1215 m/s

    Indium Thermal Properties - Enthalpies and thermodynamics

    Refer to table below for Thermal properties of Indium

    Melting Point429.75 K(156.60 °C, 313.880 °F)
    Boiling Point2345 K(2071.85 °C, 3761.330 °F)
    Critical Temperature-
    Superconducting Point3.41

    Enthalpies of Indium

    Heat of Fusion3.26 kJ/mol
    Heat of Vaporization230 kJ/mol
    Heat of Combustion-

    Indium Isotopes - Nuclear Properties of Indium

    Indium has 39 isotopes, with between 97 and 135 nucleons. Indium has 1 stable naturally occuring isotopes.

    Isotopes of Indium - Naturally occurring stable Isotopes: 113In.

    IsotopeZNIsotope Mass% AbundanceT halfDecay Mode
    97In494897Synthetic
    98In494998Synthetic
    99In495099Synthetic
    100In4951100Synthetic
    101In4952101Synthetic
    102In4953102Synthetic
    103In4954103Synthetic
    104In4955104Synthetic
    105In4956105Synthetic
    106In4957106Synthetic
    107In4958107Synthetic
    108In4959108Synthetic
    109In4960109Synthetic
    110In4961110Synthetic
    111In4962111Synthetic
    112In4963112Synthetic
    113In49641134.29%StableN/A
    114In4965114Synthetic
    115In496611595.71%Stable
    116In4967116Synthetic
    117In4968117Synthetic
    118In4969118Synthetic
    119In4970119Synthetic
    120In4971120Synthetic
    121In4972121Synthetic
    122In4973122Synthetic
    123In4974123Synthetic
    124In4975124Synthetic
    125In4976125Synthetic
    126In4977126Synthetic
    127In4978127Synthetic
    128In4979128Synthetic
    129In4980129Synthetic
    130In4981130Synthetic
    131In4982131Synthetic
    132In4983132Synthetic
    133In4984133Synthetic
    134In4985134Synthetic
    135In4986135Synthetic

    Regulatory and Health - Health and Safety Parameters and Guidelines

    The United States Department of Transportation (DOT) identifies hazard class of all dangerous elements/goods/commodities either by its class (or division) number or name. The DOT has divided these materials into nine different categories, known as Hazard Classes.

    Flammable solids, self-reactive substances and solid desensitized explosives

    NFPA 704 is a Standard System for the Identification of the Hazards of Materials for Emergency Response. NFPA is a standard maintained by the US based National Fire Protection Association.

    The health (blue), flammability (red), and reactivity (yellow) rating all use a numbering scale ranging from 0 to 4. A value of zero means that the element poses no hazard; a rating of four indicates extreme danger.

    Autoignition Point-
    Flashpoint-

    Database Search

    List of unique identifiers to search the element in various chemical registry databases

    DatabaseIdentifier number
    CAS Number - Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS)CAS7440-74-6
    RTECS NumberRTECSNL1050000
    CID Number CID5359967
    Gmelin Number-
    NSC Number-

    FAQs

    What is the electronic configuration of Indium?

    The electronic configuration of Indium is 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d10 4s2 4p6 4d10 5s2 5p1.

    What is the abbreviated electronic configuration of Indium?

    The abbreviated electronic configuration of Indium is [Kr] 4d10 5s2 5p1. To form abbreviated notation of electronic configuration, the completely filled subshells are replaced by the noble gas of the preceding period in square brackets.

    What is the symbol of Indium?

    Symbol of Indium is In. Indium is a chemical element with symbol In and atomic number 49.

    What is the position of Indium in the Periodic Table?

    Indium is a chemical element with the symbol In and atomic number 49. Indium is the 49 element on the periodic table. It is located in group 13 and period 5 in the modern periodic table.

    What is the atomic number of Indium?

    The atomic number of Indium is 49.

    What is the color of Indium?

    Indium is of Silver color.

    Who discovered Indium?

    The element Indium was discovered by F. Reich and T. Richter in year 1863 in Germany. Indium was first isolated by T. Richter in 1867.

    How many valence electrons does a Indium atom have?

    Indium has 3 valence electrons. Indium has 49 electrons out of which 3 valence electrons are present in the 5s2 5p1 outer orbitals of atom.

    What is the melting Point of Indium?

    Melting Point of Indium is 429.75 K.

    What is the boiling Point of Indium?

    Boiling Point of Indium is 2345 K.

    What is the melting Point of Indium in Kelvin?

    Melting Point of Indium in Kelvin is 429.75 K.

    What is the boiling Point of Indium in Kelvin?

    Boiling Point of Indium in Kelvin is 2345 K.

    What is the melting Point of Indium in Celsius?

    Melting Point of Indium in Celsius is 156.60 °C.

    What is the boiling Point of Indium in Celsius?

    Boiling Point of Indium in Celsius is 2071.85 °C.

    What is the melting Point of Indium in Fahrenheit?

    Melting Point of Indium in Fahrenheit is 313.88 °F.

    What is the boiling Point of Indium in Fahrenheit?

    Boiling Point of Indium in Fahrenheit is 3761.33 °F.

    What is the electronic configuration of Indium 49?

    The electronic configuration of Indium will be 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d10 4s2 4p6 4d10 5s2 5p1.

    How do you write the electron configuration for Indium?

    The electronic configuration of Indium will be 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d10 4s2 4p6 4d10 5s2 5p1.