berkelium

noun

berke·​li·​um ˈbər-klē-əm 

: a radioactive metallic element produced artificially (as by bombarding americium 241 with alpha particles) see Chemical Elements Table

Examples of berkelium in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But there’s another factor at play that makes the time seem more urgent: the half-life of the radioactive source element berkelium. —Caroline Delbert, Popular Mechanics, 6 Mar. 2023

As part of the discovery team, Phelps purified the element berkelium to create a film – a painstaking, monthslong process. —Charli Leevongcharoen, CNN, 7 Feb. 2023

The most recent elemental advance came last year when nuclear scientists at the Helmholtz Center for Heavy Ion Research in Germany bombarded a lump of 97-proton berkelium with a beam of 20-proton calcium ions. —Adam Hadhazy, Discover Magazine, 22 Jan. 2015

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Berkeley, California

First Known Use

1950, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

berkelium

noun

berke·​li·​um ˈbər-kle-əm 

: an artificially prepared radioactive chemical element see element

Medical Definition

berkelium

noun

berke·​li·​um ˈbər-klē-əm 

: a radioactive metallic element produced by bombarding americium 241 with helium ions

—symbol Bk see Chemical Elements Table