Compare Lithium vs Cesium
Comparing Lithium (Li) and Cesium (Cs). Atomic numbers 3 and 55 with atomic masses 6.938 u and 132.905 u, classified as alkali metal and alkali metal. Below: a side-by-side comparison of their physical, atomic, electron-configuration and historical properties, including density, melting and boiling points, ionization energies, oxidation states and discovery history.
Periodic properties of the elements
| Lithium | Cesium | |
|---|---|---|
| Symbol | Li | Cs |
| Atomic number | 3 | 55 |
| Group | 1 | 1 |
| Period | 2 | 6 |
| Block | s | s |
| Element category | Alkali Metal | Alkali Metal |
Physical properties
| Lithium | Cesium | |
|---|---|---|
| Phase at STP | Solid | Solid |
| Density | 0.534 g/cm3 | 1.93 g/cm3 |
| Atomic weight | 6.938 u | 132.905 u |
| Melting point | 453.65 K 180.5 °C 356.9 °F | 301.7 K 28.55 °C 83.39 °F |
| Boiling point | 1603 K 1329.85 °C 2425.73 °F | 944 K 670.85 °C 1239.53 °F |
Atomic properties
| Lithium | Cesium | |
|---|---|---|
| Electronegativity (Pauling Scale) | 0.98 | 0.79 |
| Electron affinity | 59.6326 kJ/mol | 45.505 kJ/mol |
| Oxidation states | +1 (a strongly basic oxide) | −1, +1 (a strongly basic oxide) |
| Ionization energies |
|
|
Electron configuration
| Lithium | Cesium | |
|---|---|---|
| Shorthand configuration | [He] 2s1 | [Xe] 6s1 |
| Full configuration | 1s2 2s1 | 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d10 4s2 4p6 4d10 5s2 5p6 6s1 |
| Electrons per shell | 2, 1 | 2, 8, 18, 18, 8, 1 |
History
| Lithium | Cesium | |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery | Johan August Arfwedson (1817) | Robert Bunsen, Gustav Kirchhoff (1860) |
| First isolation | William Thomas Brande, Sir Humphrey Davy (1821) | Carl Setterberg (1882) |