HHomeBackground Color:He
LiBeOsmium Main PageBlack White GrayBCNOFNe
NaMgOsmium Pictures PageAlSiPSClAr
KCaOsmium Technical DataScTiVCrMnFeCoNiCuZnGaGeAsSeBrKr
RbSrYZrNbMoTcRuRhPdAgCdInSnSbTeIXe
CsBaLaCePrNdPmSmEuGdTbDyHoErTmYbLuHfTaWReOsIrPtAuHgTlPbBiPoAtRn
FrRaAcThPaUNpPuAmCmBkCfEsFmMdNoLrRfDbSgBhHsMtDsRgCnNhFlMcLvTsOg

Another antique phonograph needle.
An example of the element Osmium

Sample Image
Osmium Another antique phonograph needle
Another antique phonograph needle.
This is a different brand, one that claims to have an osmium tip welded on it (see below for packaging making this claim). It's still magnetic, though without breaking off the tip it's a bit hard to tell whether the tip itself is, or whether it's just the rest of the shaft that is attracted to the magnet.

Preliminary analysis by x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy at the Center for Microanalysis of Materials, University of Illinois (partially supported by the U.S. Department of Energy under grant DEFG02-91-ER45439) indicates that there is absolutely no osmium in this needle either. Again, it could be that the osmium is only in the tip, which I may have missed, or that a plating obscured it. In this case the machine saw 57% iron, 43% copper.

Source: George (not 007) Lazenby
Contributor: George (not 007) Lazenby
Acquired: 30 August, 2002
Price: Donated
Size: 0.5"
Purity: 0%
The Elements book Mad Science book Periodic Table Poster  Click here to buy a book, photographic periodic table poster, card deck, or 3D print based on the images you see here!