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What it is…

What it is used for, with a Tad-bit more of information that will help you understand….

How it works.

• Germanium is one of the many metals in the periodic table…Its atomic number is
32. You see it as Ge and its atomic weight is approximately 72.59. It is also sold 3$/g.

*Now it may seem, Oh, another science project that won’t help me understand nothing
on whatever the hell they’re talking about, kind of project. Now if you wanted to know
what the hell I’m talking about it so happens to be an element, maybe you haven’t
heard about it before, but once I’m through you will know for future reference, and be
happy because you understand what they’re talking about.

• But back to business… Germanium comes from the Latin word ‘Germania’, which
means Germany. Mendeleeve, a German scientist, guessed that it could be found in
ekasilicon (E-K-A-silicon)… Although the element itself wasn’t discovered by
Mendeleeve, it was later discovered by Winkler in 1886.

• Normally, Germanium is usually found in the following:

-Argyrodite, which is a combination of germanium and silver.
-Germanite, which contains 8% of germanium.
-Zinc-ores, coal sources, and some minerals also contain germanium.

• What they do to obtain it commercially is they collect the dust from smelters from Zinc-
ores, and can also be recovered by the combustion by-products of certain coals.

• Germanium is a gray-white metalloid. In its pure state, this element is crystalline and
brittle, only keeping its luster in room temperature air.

• When it is ‘doped’ with arsenic, gallium, or other elements, it is used as a transistor

element in thousands of electronic applications. Also it can be an alloying agent, such as
a phosphor in florescent lamps, or as a catalyst.

• Germanium and Germanium oxide can appear to be transparent, and can be used in
infrared spectroscopes, or any other optical equipment, including extremely infrared
detectors. Also in wide-angle camera lenses and microscope objectives.

• Recently, organo-germanium has become strikingly important, due to the fact that its
compounds have low mammalian toxicity, but marked activity against certain bacteria,
makes it a useful component in chemotherapy.

*I don’t think that was a hard discovery, learning about Germanium, it really is an easy
component to understand. 
GERMANIUM

By: Lesley Mayhew

Class: 805
February, 13th, 2008
To: Mr.Cheung