Tellurium, a rare and fascinating metalloid element, holds a unique position in the periodic table due to its diverse properties and applications, from thermoelectric devices to advanced semiconductors. Its behavior and utility are often deeply tied to its atomic structure, particularly the variations in its nuclear composition.
Understanding an element often means delving into its isotopic variations. For Tellurium, these variations are particularly diverse, each with its own characteristics. In this complete resource, you’ll find a total of 39 Tellurium Isotopes, spanning from the lighter Tellurium-105 to the heavier Tellurium-143. For each, we’ve provided essential data including its Mass Number (u), Natural Abundance (%), and Half-life (time), all clearly organized for your reference below.
Why are Tellurium isotopes important?
Tellurium isotopes play a crucial role across various scientific and industrial applications. Stable isotopes like Tellurium-128 and Tellurium-130 are intensely studied for their potential in neutrinoless double-beta decay experiments, offering insights into fundamental physics. Other isotopes find use in research as tracers and in specialized material science, contributing to our understanding of chemical processes and enhancing the development of new technologies.
Tellurium Isotopes
| Isotope Name | Mass Number (u) | Natural Abundance (%) | Half-life (time) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tellurium-105 | 104.94 | N/A | >620 ns |
| Tellurium-106 | 105.94 | N/A | 70 µs |
| Tellurium-107 | 106.94 | N/A | 3.1 ms |
| Tellurium-108 | 107.93 | N/A | 2.1 s |
| Tellurium-109 | 108.93 | N/A | 4.6 s |
| Tellurium-110 | 109.92 | N/A | 18.6 s |
| Tellurium-111 | 110.92 | N/A | 19.3 s |
| Tellurium-112 | 111.92 | N/A | 2.0 min |
| Tellurium-113 | 112.92 | N/A | 1.7 min |
| Tellurium-114 | 113.91 | N/A | 15.2 min |
| Tellurium-115 | 114.91 | N/A | 5.8 min |
| Tellurium-116 | 115.91 | N/A | 2.49 h |
| Tellurium-117 | 116.91 | N/A | 62 min |
| Tellurium-118 | 117.91 | N/A | 6.00 d |
| Tellurium-119 | 118.91 | N/A | 16.05 h |
| Tellurium-120 | 119.90 | 0.09 | Stable |
| Tellurium-121 | 120.90 | N/A | 19.17 d |
| Tellurium-122 | 121.90 | 2.55 | Stable |
| Tellurium-123 | 122.90 | 0.89 | >6.0 x 10^14 y |
| Tellurium-124 | 123.90 | 4.74 | Stable |
| Tellurium-125 | 124.90 | 7.07 | Stable |
| Tellurium-126 | 125.90 | 18.84 | Stable |
| Tellurium-127 | 126.91 | N/A | 9.35 h |
| Tellurium-128 | 127.90 | 31.74 | 2.2 x 10^24 y |
| Tellurium-129 | 128.91 | N/A | 69.6 min |
| Tellurium-130 | 129.91 | 34.08 | 8.2 x 10^20 y |
| Tellurium-131 | 130.91 | N/A | 25.0 min |
| Tellurium-132 | 131.91 | N/A | 3.20 d |
| Tellurium-133 | 132.91 | N/A | 12.5 min |
| Tellurium-134 | 133.91 | N/A | 41.8 min |
| Tellurium-135 | 134.92 | N/A | 19.0 s |
| Tellurium-136 | 135.92 | N/A | 17.5 s |
| Tellurium-137 | 136.92 | N/A | 2.49 s |
| Tellurium-138 | 137.93 | N/A | 1.4 s |
| Tellurium-139 | 138.93 | N/A | 500 ms |
| Tellurium-140 | 139.93 | N/A | 300 ms |
| Tellurium-141 | 140.94 | N/A | 100 ms |
| Tellurium-142 | 141.94 | N/A | 50 ms |
| Tellurium-143 | 142.95 | N/A | 30 ms |
Images and Descriptions
Tellurium-105
One of the lightest known tellurium isotopes, it’s highly unstable and neutron-deficient. This synthetic isotope exists for less than a microsecond before decaying, making it a subject of fundamental nuclear physics research.
Tellurium-106
An extremely short-lived synthetic isotope. It is notable for decaying primarily through alpha emission, a rare decay mode for tellurium isotopes, transforming it into an isotope of tin.
Tellurium-107
Existing for only a few milliseconds, this artificial isotope is created in laboratories for nuclear structure studies. It decays through a combination of alpha and beta-plus decay.
Tellurium-108
This synthetic, neutron-poor isotope decays in a couple of seconds, primarily through beta-plus decay and electron capture, turning into Antimony-108. It helps scientists study nuclei far from the valley of stability.
Tellurium-109
With a half-life of just under five seconds, this artificially produced radioisotope provides insights into the behavior of neutron-deficient nuclei. It decays into Antimony-109.
Tellurium-110
A purely synthetic isotope with a brief existence. It decays in under 20 seconds, transforming into antimony. Its properties are studied to better understand nuclear forces and decay processes.
Tellurium-111
Another short-lived, lab-made isotope that decays quickly via positron emission. Its study contributes to the broader understanding of nuclear physics and the properties of exotic atomic nuclei.
Tellurium-112
With a two-minute half-life, this synthetic isotope lasts long enough for more detailed study than its lighter counterparts. It decays into Antimony-112 through electron capture.
Tellurium-113
This radioactive isotope is produced artificially and has a half-life of just under two minutes. It decays into Antimony-113, and its study helps refine models of nuclear structure.
Tellurium-114
A synthetic radioisotope with a quarter-hour half-life. It is used in nuclear research to study the properties of nuclei that have fewer neutrons than their stable counterparts.
Tellurium-115
This artificial isotope has a half-life of nearly six minutes and decays by positron emission and electron capture. It also has a metastable state, Te-115m, with a slightly longer half-life.
Tellurium-116
Lasting for a couple of hours, this synthetic isotope is more stable than many other artificial forms of tellurium. It decays into Antimony-116, making it useful in some radiochemical studies.
Tellurium-117
With a half-life of about an hour, this radioisotope is created in particle accelerators. Its decay properties are of interest to nuclear chemists and physicists studying atomic structures.
Tellurium-118
A relatively long-lived synthetic isotope, lasting for six days. This makes it a valuable tool in scientific research, allowing for more extended experiments than shorter-lived isotopes.
Tellurium-119
This radioisotope has a convenient half-life of about 16 hours, making it useful as a radiotracer in certain chemical and biological experiments. It also has a long-lived metastable isomer, Te-119m.
Tellurium-120
The rarest of tellurium’s eight natural isotopes. While it is observationally stable, some theories suggest it might undergo double beta decay, though this has never been observed.
Tellurium-121
A man-made radioisotope with a half-life of over 19 days. Its decay produces gamma rays of specific energies, which has made it useful in nuclear medicine research and as a calibration source.
Tellurium-122
A stable, naturally occurring isotope that makes up a small fraction of all tellurium on Earth. It is one of the building blocks of the element found in minerals and alloys.
Tellurium-123
Though technically radioactive, its half-life is so immensely long (trillions of times the age of the universe) that it is considered stable for all practical purposes. It’s the rarest stable isotope of tellurium.
Tellurium-124
A common, stable form of tellurium found in nature. It contributes significantly to tellurium’s overall atomic weight and is used as a starting material for producing other radioactive isotopes in research.
Tellurium-125
This stable, natural isotope is particularly important in science because it is active in Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. This allows scientists to study the structure of tellurium-containing compounds.
Tellurium-126
The third most abundant stable isotope of tellurium. Its high natural prevalence makes it a significant component of tellurium’s presence in the Earth’s crust.
Tellurium-127
A synthetic radioisotope with a half-life of over nine hours. This duration is practical for use in short-term radiotracer experiments in chemistry and environmental science.
Tellurium-128
The most abundant natural isotope of tellurium. It holds the record for the longest experimentally measured half-life of any known radionuclide, decaying so slowly it is effectively stable for eternity.
Tellurium-129
A radioactive isotope with a half-life of just over an hour. It can be produced from Tellurium-128 and is often used as a tracer to study chemical reactions and biological processes.
Tellurium-130
The second most abundant isotope, and like Te-128, it has an incredibly long half-life. It decays via double beta decay, a rare process studied to understand the fundamental nature of neutrinos.
Tellurium-131
A short-lived fission product created in nuclear reactors. It is most notable as the immediate parent of Iodine-131, a critical radioisotope used in nuclear medicine to treat thyroid cancer.
Tellurium-132
A key fission product that is a significant source of radiation in the first few days after a nuclear event. It is also the parent of Iodine-132, another medically useful isotope.
Tellurium-133
A highly radioactive, neutron-rich isotope that is a product of nuclear fission. It exists in two isomeric states (different energy levels) and decays quickly into an isotope of iodine.
Tellurium-134
Another neutron-rich isotope produced during the fission of heavy elements like uranium. With a half-life of about 42 minutes, it’s a short-lived component of nuclear waste.
Tellurium-135
This extremely unstable isotope is a direct product of uranium and plutonium fission. It decays in just 19 seconds, contributing to the complex chain of decay products in a nuclear reactor.
Tellurium-136
A very short-lived, neutron-heavy isotope that exists for less than 20 seconds. It is studied as part of the decay chain of fission products from nuclear reactors and weapons.
Tellurium-137
An extremely unstable and neutron-rich isotope that rapidly decays via beta emission. Its properties are of interest to astrophysicists modeling the rapid neutron-capture process (r-process) in supernovae.
Tellurium-138
A fleeting, synthetic isotope with a half-life of just over one second. It is created and studied in labs to understand the limits of nuclear stability for very neutron-rich atoms.
Tellurium-139
Decaying in half a second, this is one of the heavier, highly unstable synthetic tellurium isotopes. It can only be observed briefly in specialized laboratory settings.
Tellurium-140
With a half-life of a fraction of a second, this lab-created isotope is on the frontier of nuclear research. It helps scientists map out the edges of the known nuclear landscape.
Tellurium-141
An extremely short-lived, neutron-rich isotope with a half-life of just one-tenth of a second. It is produced in minute quantities for fundamental research into nuclear forces.
Tellurium-142
One of the heaviest and most unstable tellurium isotopes ever synthesized. It decays almost instantly, pushing the boundaries of what scientists know about atomic nuclei.
Tellurium-143
This is among the most neutron-rich and short-lived isotopes of tellurium ever observed. It exists for mere milliseconds before decaying, representing an extreme state of nuclear matter.
