What does solid antimony look like?

The most stable form of antimony is a lustrous, silvery bluish-white solid that is characterized by its brittleness and flaky texture.1

While this metallic form is the most common, antimony can exist in other allotropic forms with different appearances:

• Amorphous black antimony: This form results from the sudden quenching of antimony vapor.1
• Yellow antimony: This form is produced through the low-temperature oxidation of stibine.1
• Explosive antimony: An unstable amorphous form that can be produced under specific conditions of electrolytic deposition; it is known to change into the stable metallic form in a mildly explosive manner if it is bent or scratched.1

As a metalloid, antimony generally appears as a lustrous solid, though it can manifest in various metallic, crystalline, or powdery forms depending on its state.2