You may have seen little thumbnail sized or even smaller battery cells used in watches and other electronic gadgets. We often wonder how such tiny things can power machines. Lithium is the element that gives them power.
Under standard conditions lithium is the lightest metal; and therefore, this element is ideal for small batteries which must be light and compact for their use in wrist-watches, pocket calculators, toys and even cardiac pacemakers. Due to its lightness, it is also very useful in aircraft manufacture.
The speciality of lithium does not end there. It is also a very soft metal. It is so soft that with your kitchen knife you can cut it into pieces. The element is also so low in density that if you drop it in water, it floats!
Scientists believe that the origin of lithium can be traced back to the Big Bang. Lithium must be one of the three elements thought to have come into existence during the Big Bang.
Lithium is abundant in sea water. However, its presence in the soil is very minimal. Lithium is represented as Li, and has the atomic number three.
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