Copernicium

Element 112 · Transition metal

Specimen

Atomic number: 112
Atomic mass: 286.179
State at room temperature: Unknown
Melting point: Unknown
Boiling point: Unknown
Density: Unknown
Discovered: 1996

Physical data from PubChem.¹

Can I eat it?

In food and water: Never made in amounts you could eat. Only a few atoms of copernicium have ever been made. ²

The atom

Shell	Electrons
1 (K)	2
2 (L)	8
3 (M)	18
4 (N)	32
5 (O)	32
6 (P)	18
7 (Q) outermost	2
Total	112

Configuration [Rn] 5f¹⁴ 6d¹⁰ 7s²

5f ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓

6d ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓

7s ↑ ↓

A shell diagram: each ring is an electron shell and each dot is one electron. The nucleus holds 112 protons. The outermost shell is shown in red. Electrons do not travel on rings: they fill orbitals, regions where an electron is likely to be found. The boxes are those orbitals for the electrons outside the Rn core, with one arrow per electron. This configuration is a prediction; it has not been measured.

Related elements

Sources

1

National Center for Biotechnology Information (PubChem), 2026. Periodic Table of Elements .

Atomic mass, electron configuration, melting and boiling points, density and discovery year for all 118 elements.
2
Royal Society of Chemistry, Periodic Table, 2026. Copernicium - Element information, properties and uses .

Reference page; its Biological role and Natural abundance sections are quoted.
- Copernicium is a man-made element of which only a few atoms have ever been made.

Specimen

Can I eat it?

The atom

Related elements

New elements by e-mail

Sources