Yttrium is a silvery-metallic transition metal chemically similar to the lanthanides.
Core Principles & Analysis
Johan Gadolin discovered yttrium's oxide in 1794 in a black mineral from Ytterby, Sweden, a quarry that ultimately lent its name to four different elements.
Though classed with the rare earths, yttrium is more abundant in the crust than lead; yttrium barium copper oxide, discovered in 1987, was the first superconductor to work above liquid-nitrogen temperature.
Yttrium aluminium garnet hosts Nd:YAG lasers used in surgery and machining, europium-doped yttrium compounds produced the red in color TV screens, and yttria stabilizes tough zirconia ceramics.