lutetium-176

chemical isotope

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

June 30, 2026

Quick Summary

Lutetium-176 is a radioactive isotope of lutetium, a rare-earth metal that is the densest and highest-melting element in the lanthanide series. Natural lutetium consists of two isotopes: the stable lutetium-175 (97.4%) and the radioactive lutetium-176 (2.6%). Lutetium-176 has a half-life of 3.76 x 10^10 years and is used to determine the age of meteorites relative to Earth. Lutetium itself is a silvery-white metal, stable in air, and dissolves in acids, except for hydrofluoric acid. It was discovered independently by Carl Auer von Welsbach and Georges Urbain in 1907-08.1

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

3 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

lutetium
4 percent) and radioactive lutetium-176 (2.6 percent, 3.76 × 10¹⁰-year half-life). The radioactive isotope is used to determine the age of meteorites relative to that of Earth. In addition to lutetium-176, and not counting nuclear isomers, 33 more radioactive isotopes of lutetium are known. They range in mass from…
Read More
4 percent) and radioactive lutetium-176 (2.6 percent, 3.76 × 10¹⁰-year half-life). The radioactive isotope is used to determine the age of meteorites relative to that of Earth. In addition to lutetium-176, and not counting nuclear isomers, 33 more radioactive isotopes of lutetium are known. They range in mass from…
Read More