ElementsWhat is europium?
Europium is a soft, silvery metal and the most reactive of the lanthanides.
What is europium used for?
Red and blue phosphors in screens and lamps, and marks on euro banknotes that glow under ultraviolet light.
Where the name comes from
From Europe.
Key facts
- Symbol
- Eu
- Atomic number
- 63
- Atomic mass
- 151.964 u
- Family
- Lanthanide
- Period
- 6
- Group
- none (f-block)
- Block
- f
- State at room temperature
- Solid
- Melting point
- 821.9 °C (1,095 K, 1,511 °F)
- Boiling point
- 1,529 °C (1,802 K, 2,784 °F)
- Density
- 5.24 g/cm³
- Electrons per shell
- 2, 8, 18, 25, 8, 2
- Electron configuration
- [Xe]6s2 4f7
- Common oxidation states
- +3, +2
- Electronegativity (Pauling)
- no value
- First ionisation energy
- 5.67 eV
- Electron affinity
- no value
- Atomic radius (van der Waals)
- 233 pm
- Discovered
- 1901
Place in the periodic table
Europium is element number 63. It sits in period 6 (row 6) of the periodic table, in the separate row of lanthanides drawn below the main table, and belongs to the f-block. Just before it comes samarium (62), and just after it comes gadolinium (64).
Family: Lanthanides.
Physical properties
At room temperature europium is a solid. It melts at 821.9 °C and boils at 1,529 °C, so it stays liquid over a range of 707 degrees. Its density is 5.24 grams per cubic centimetre, so a one-litre block would weigh about 5.24 kilograms. By density it ranks 62nd among the 96 elements with a measured value.
Inside the atom
An atom of europium has 63 protons in its nucleus and, when neutral, 63 electrons around it. The electrons are arranged in 6 shells: 2, 8, 18, 25, 8, 2. The outermost shell holds 2 electrons. Written in full, the electron configuration is [Xe]6s2 4f7.
Removing one electron from an atom takes 5.67 electronvolts (about 547 kilojoules per mole). One mole of europium weighs 151.964 grams, so a single gram contains about 3.96 × 1021 atoms.
The ring picture is a simple model that only counts the electrons in each shell. Real atoms do not look like this.
Next steps
- Work out the weight of a compound that contains europium with the molar mass calculator.
- Compare it with every other element in the sortable list.
- Test yourself with the symbol quiz.
Figures on this page are from PubChem (U.S. National Library of Medicine), as downloaded on 11 November 2026. See About and data sources.