Pressure-Stabilized Superconductive Ionic Tantalum Hydrides.

See more Tantalum products. Tantalum (atomic symbol: Ta, atomic number: 73) is a Block D, Group 5, Period 6 element with an atomic weight of 180.94788. The number of electrons in each of tantalum's shells is [2, 8, 18, 32, 11, 2] and its electron configuration is [Xe] 4f¹⁴ 5d³ 6s². The tantalum atom has a radius of 146 pm and a Van der Waals radius of 217 pm. Tantalum was first discovered by Anders G. Ekeberg in 1802 in Uppsala, Sweden however, it was not until 1844 when Heinrich Rose first recognized it as a distinct element. In its elemental form, tantalum has a grayish blue appearance. Tantalum is found in the minerals tantalite, microlite, wodginite, euxenite, and polycrase. Due to the close relation of tantalum to niobium in the periodic table, Tantalum's name originates from the Greek word Tantalos meaning Father of Niobe in Greek mythology.