yttrium
noun
yt·tri·um
| \ ˈi-trē-əm
\
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Definition of yttrium
: a metallic element with atomic number 39 usually included in the rare-earth group that occurs usually with other rare earth elements in minerals and is used especially in phosphors, YAG lasers, alloys, and treatments for certain cancers — see Chemical Elements Table
Examples of yttrium in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
That year, Orenstein and his colleagues at Bell Labs studied a cuprate called yttrium barium copper oxide and found that, like Bednorz and Müller’s sample, its electrical resistance dropped linearly as it was cooled toward its critical temperature. — Quanta Magazine, "Universal Quantum Phenomenon Found in Strange Metals," 19 Nov. 2018 For instance, yttrium, one of the metals included in this recent discovery, can be used to make camera lenses, superconductors and cell phone screens. — Aj Willingham, CNN, "How the mud in this small Japanese island could change the global economy," 16 Apr. 2018 The 16 million tons of materials could contain 780 years worth of yttrium, 620 years worth of europium, 420 years worth of terbium, and 730 years worth of dysprosium. — Aj Willingham, CNN, "How the mud in this small Japanese island could change the global economy," 16 Apr. 2018 The superconductor in question is a steel ribbon, coated with yttrium-barium-copper oxide, or YBCO. — Eric Limer, Popular Mechanics, "Scientists: Fusion Power Could Be on the Grid in 15 Years," 9 Mar. 2018 The iPhone contains a chorus of eight rare earth elements: neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, terbium, gadolinium, europium, lanthanum, and yttrium. — Edward Humes, WIRED, "Your iPhone’s 500,000-Mile Journey to Your Pocket," 12 Apr. 2016 The team called the color YInMn after the chemicals that were combined to create it: yttrium, indium and manganese oxides. — Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, "Crayola To Debut Crayon Inspired by New Shade of Blue," 9 May 2017 Yttrium and neodymium are alloyed to make the magnets in turbines for windmills. — Nelson Ching, National Geographic, "How Acid—and Bacteria—Could Make Recycling Your Phone Greener," 10 June 2016These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'yttrium.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for yttrium
yttrium
noun
yt·tri·um
| \ ˈi-trē-əm
\
\
Medical Definition of yttrium
: a trivalent metallic element usually included among the rare earth elements which it resembles chemically and with which it occurs in minerals
—symbol Y
— see Chemical Elements Table