Flerovium is a radioactive element produced by bombarding plutonium with calcium nuclei. Its research context includes predictions about the stability of heavier nuclei. Those predictions are distinct from the short-lived atoms actually measured, making it an example of keeping a theoretical possibility separate from an observation.
FROM ELEMENT TO APPLICATION
AN ELEMENT IN CONTEXT
Why can the surface itself complicate an interpretation of flerovium adsorption?
Flerovium atoms on gold and silicon oxide
FOLLOW THIS RELATIONSHIP
Name the competing explanations
Sparse deposition observations can have more than one interpretation. Flerovium’s apparent behavior may depend on the atom-surface interaction and on which kinds of surface sites the experiment presents.
Explore the model (optional)
FlFORM → INTERACTION → CONSEQUENCE
Follow the explanation in either direction. These are authored steps, not a physical clock.
Optional: check your understanding
USE THE EXPLANATION
Which response best addresses conflicting interpretations of sparse adsorption events?
Atomic identity, reference properties and structure models
INTERACTIVE 3D114 visible sites
An electron censusDrag to rotate · scroll or pinch to zoom
[Rn] 5f14 6d10 7s2 7p2. Grouping electrons by principal shell connects the neutral-atom configuration to periodic-table patterns.
What this representation means
A three-dimensional counting diagram. Dots are count markers, not measured electron positions; spherical placement and spacing are arbitrary. There are no electron trajectories here. Orbitals describe quantum states.
For superheavy elements, this configuration is a theoretical assignment. It does not establish measured bulk chemistry or a material state.
Loading reference properties…
HISTORY & HUMAN DISCOVERY
A laboratory honored, a chemical analogy tested
Experiments by the Dubna–Livermore collaboration produced evidence for element 114 in 1998. Discovery recognition followed in 2011, and the name flerovium was approved in 2012. The name honors the Flerov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions, itself named for Georgy Flerov. Subsequent surface experiments addressed a striking question: would an element beneath lead show familiar metallic reactivity, or would its heavy-atom electronic structure make it unusually reluctant to interact?
1998
First synthesis evidence
Dubna–Livermore experiments produce evidence for element 114.
2012
Name approved
Flerovium, Fl, is approved following recognition of the discovery in 2011.
Flerovium is produced in accelerator experiments, not in a natural deposit or an ordinary chemical reaction. Only tiny numbers of suitable radioactive atoms are available. Chemical measurements therefore depend on accumulating separate events and understanding backgrounds, rather than obtaining enough material to inspect a conventional sample.
The configuration is predicted, but studies provide experimental evidence of high volatility and limited reactivity under tested conditions. Earlier few-atom studies allowed differing interpretations, motivating further work. These results concern atoms interacting with surfaces; they should not be presented as direct measurements of a bulk flerovium liquid or solid.
Each section links its supporting references. Descriptions and diagrams were authored for this atlas. Source checks completed. Source checks dated 2026-09-06.
CITE THIS PAGE
Family labels and the group-3 layout are teaching conventions. A table position does not establish an unknown bulk property. Electronic configurations refer to neutral atoms; ions and material environments require their own account.
Read each reference property together with its units, conditions and the reference information below.
Not yet recorded: electron affinity, second ionization energy, ground-state term symbol, van der waals radius, thermal conductivity, specific heat capacity, electrical resistivity, crystal structure, lattice parameter a, space group, abundance in seawater, abundance in the universe, annual production, supply-risk listing, hazard classification, biological role, cas registry number, pubchem cid, wikidata item. These families are declared and awaiting an ingestion run against the source each names; they are listed here rather than shown as empty rows.
Physical
Intended reference: CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics · CRC Press
Phase at 20 °C
Not recorded
293.15 K, 101.325 kPa
Melting point
Not recorded
at standard pressure unless noted
Boiling point
Not recorded
101.325 kPa
Density
Not recorded
solids and liquids at 293 K; gases at 273 K and 101.325 kPa
Atomic and electronic
Intended reference: Pauling electronegativity scale · Widely tabulated; original in The Nature of the Chemical Bond
Electronegativity
Not recorded
Pauling scale
First ionization energy
Not recorded
gas-phase neutral atom, ground state
Covalent radius
Not recorded
single-bond covalent radius
Common oxidation states
Not recorded
states met in ordinary compounds; not exhaustive
Occurrence and identity
Intended reference: CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics · CRC Press
Abundance in the crust
Not recorded
upper continental crust, mass fraction
Has stable isotopes
Noderived
Discovery year in CE
1998 CEderived
WHERE IT SITS AMONG ITS NEIGHBORS
Electronegativity across period 7
Ra 0.9 Pauling · Radium
Electronegativity across period 7. Exact values.
Ra
0.9
Ac
1.1
Th
1.3
Pa
1.5
U
1.38
Np
1.36
Pu
1.28
Am
1.13
Cm
1.28
Bk
1.3
Cf
1.3
Es
1.3
Fm
1.3
Md
1.3
No
1.3
Lr
1.3
Electronegativity down group 14
C 2.55 Pauling · Carbon
Electronegativity down group 14. Exact values.
C
2.55
Si
1.9
Ge
2.01
Sn
1.96
Pb
2.33
The trend uses the same reference-property values as the periodic table. Elements with no recorded value are left out of the line rather than drawn at zero.
