The obscure element holmium is a lanthanoid with interesting magnetic properties.
Named after the city of Stockholm (from Holmia, the Latin name for Stockholm) holmium finds use as a MRI magnet and in Ho:YAG lasers, which are homium-doped yttrium aluminium garnet lasers.
These precise surgical lasers have been described as the Swiss Army knife of lasers, says Professor Allan Blackman from AUT.
Photo: RNZ
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The Elemental podcast is celebrating 150 years since the periodic table was first published by Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev.
Find out more about events during the United Nation’s International Year of the Periodic Table.
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Professor Allan Blackman is at Auckland University of Technology.
