Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A synthetic transuranic radioactive element having isotopes with mass numbers from 235 to 254. Its longest-lived isotopes, Bk-247 and Bk-248, have half-lives of 1,380 years and more than 9 years, respectively; the isotope produced in greatest quantity, Bk-249, has a half-life of 330 days. Atomic number 97; melting point 996°C; specific gravity 14 (estimated); valence 3, 4. cross-reference: Periodic Table.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun a chemical element of the transuranic series. Chemical symbol Bk; atomic number 97; atomic weight 247. It is a radioactive element, with no stable isotopes; the longest-lived isotope is of mass number 247.07, decaying by alpha-emission with a half-life of 1,400 years. The isotope with atomic weight 249 has a half-life of 314 days, and was isolated in weighable quantities.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A transuranic chemical element (symbol Bk) with an atomic number of 97.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a radioactive transuranic element; discovered by bombarding americium with helium

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[After Berkeley, California.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

After Berkeley, California, because of discovery at UC Berkeley.

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word berkelium.

Examples

  • The team produced six atoms of the element by smashing together isotopes of calcium and a radioactive element called berkelium in a particle accelerator about 75 miles north of Moscow on the Volga River, according to a paper that has been accepted for publication at the journal

    NYT > Home Page By JAMES GLANZ 2010

  • The team produced six atoms of the element by smashing together isotopes of calcium and a radioactive element called berkelium in a particle accelerator about 75 miles north of Moscow on the Volga River, according to a paper that has been accepted for publication at the journal Physical Review Letters.

    NYT > Home Page By JAMES GLANZ 2010

  • A team from the US and Russia produced the elusive element 117 by fusing together atoms of calcium and another rare, heavy element known as berkelium, filling in the final gap on the list of observed elements up to 118.

    Zee News : India National 2010

  • The team produced six atoms of the element by smashing together isotopes of calcium and a radioactive element called berkelium in a particle accelerator about 75 miles north of Moscow on the Volga River, according to a paper that has been accepted for publication at the journal Physical Review Letters.

    NYT > Home Page By JAMES GLANZ 2010

  • The team produced six atoms of the element by smashing together isotopes of calcium and a radioactive element called berkelium in a particle accelerator about 75 miles north of Moscow on the Volga River, according to a paper that has been accepted for publication at the journal Physical Review Letters.

    European Tribune European Tribune 2010

  • A team from the US and Russia produced the elusive element 117 by fusing together atoms of calcium and another rare, heavy element known as berkelium, filling in the final gap on the list of observed elements up to 118.

    Zee News : India National 2010

  • A team from the US and Russia produced the elusive element 117 by fusing together atoms of calcium and another rare, heavy element known as berkelium, filling in the final gap on the list of observed elements up to 118.

    Zee News : India National 2010

  • The team produced six atoms of the element by smashing together isotopes of calcium and a radioactive element called berkelium in a particle accelerator about 75 miles north of Moscow on the Volga River, according to a paper that has been accepted for publication at the journal Physical Review Letters.

    NYT > Home Page By JAMES GLANZ 2010

  • A team from the US and Russia produced the elusive element 117 by fusing together atoms of calcium and another rare, heavy element known as berkelium, filling in the final gap on the list of observed elements up to 118.

    Zee News : India National 2010

  • The team produced six atoms of the element by smashing together isotopes of calcium and a radioactive element called berkelium in a particle accelerator about 75 miles north of Moscow on the Volga River, according to a paper that has been accepted for publication at the journal Physical Review Letters.

    European Tribune European Tribune 2010

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • Bk.

    December 16, 2007