Gold (Au)
Element 79 · Transition metal · Solid at 25 °C · Group 11, Period 6
Gold neither rusts nor tarnishes, and it is the most malleable of metals — one gram can be beaten into a square meter of leaf. Its reliability keeps it in electronics as well as treasure.
On the periodic table, gold sits in group 11 — the coinage metals — in period 6. It is one of 38 elements classified as a transition metal, and at room temperature (25 °C) it is a solid.
Transition metals occupy the wide d-block in the middle of the table. As a family they are hard, dense, high-melting metals that conduct heat and electricity well. Their partly filled d-orbitals let many of them take several oxidation states, form vividly colored compounds, and act as catalysts — which is why so much of industry, and so much of biology, runs on this block.
Properties of gold
| Atomic number (Z) | 79 |
|---|---|
| Symbol | Au |
| Atomic mass | 196.97 |
| Category | Transition metal |
| Group | 11 |
| Period | 6 |
| Block | d-block |
| Metal / nonmetal | Metal |
| State at 25 °C | Solid |
| Electron configuration | [Xe] 4f14 5d10 6s1 |
| Electronegativity (Pauling) | 2.54 |
| Melting point | 1,064.18 °C (1,337.33 K / 1,947.52 °F) |
| Boiling point | 2,856 °C (3,129.15 K / 5,172.8 °F) |
| Density | 19.3 g/cm³ |
Position in the periodic table
Gold shares group 11 — the coinage metals with Copper (Cu), Silver (Ag), Roentgenium (Rg). Elements in the same group have the same number of outer electrons, so they tend to behave alike chemically — comparing them is one of the fastest ways to see periodic trends in action.
Within this dataset, it has the #7 highest measured density of the 97 elements with recorded values.
Physical properties
Gold melts at 1,064.18 °C (1,337.33 K / 1,947.52 °F) and boils at 2,856 °C (3,129.15 K / 5,172.8 °F), giving it a liquid range of about 1,791.8 °C at standard pressure.
Its density is 19.3 g/cm³.
See also: the interactive periodic table, how to read the periodic table, periodic trends.