Скачать или смотреть Element of the Month: Yttrium – The Hidden Colors of Yttrium

Yttrium was first discovered in 1794 near Ytterby, Sweden—a town that gave its name to four elements. Though it’s never found in pure form in nature, yttrium shows up in minerals, usually in a +3 oxidation state. Most of its compounds are white, but when combined with other elements, it reveals a surprising range of colors and uses.
Yttrium oxide doped with europium gave CRT televisions their red glow. Yttrium aluminum garnet, or YAG, is used in LEDs, jewelry, and lasers. Nd:YAG lasers cut metal or emit green light. Er:YAG lasers help monitor blood sugar. Pr:YLF lasers emit visible light in multiple colors.
Yttrium also plays a role in pigments. Mixing white YInO₃ with black YMnO₃ creates YInMn Blue—a vivid, stable pigment used in art and coatings.
Its role in superconductors is less flashy but just as important. Yttrium barium copper oxide looks dull, but when cooled with liquid nitrogen, it becomes a high-temperature superconductor.
In labs, yttrium’s only natural isotope, ⁸⁹Y, is used as an internal standard in ICP-MS and ICP-OES, unless the sample might contain yttrium. It’s also useful for visually tuning plasma flows in ICP-OES.
And in medicine, the synthetic isotope ⁹⁰Y is used in cancer treatment.
Yttrium doesn’t make headlines, but it quietly powers technologies we rely on every day—from lasers and pigments to superconductors and diagnostics.
Purity matters when working with yttrium – especially in high-performance applications. To detect even the smallest traces of unwanted elements, ICP-OES is the go-to method. It delivers reliable results and helps ensure yttrium oxide meets strict quality standards across industries. This application report breaks down the process, shares key findings, and explains why ICP-OES is the right tool for precise elemental analysis. Read more here: https://www.spectro.com/landingpages/...