Write the formula for yttrium oxide, the LED phosphor host.
Y3+ and O2- cross to Y2O3. Doped with europium it glows red — the red in classic CRT televisions came from exactly this crystal.
What Is the Charge of Yttrium?
Yttrium commonly forms Y3+ in introductory ionic compounds.
Yttrium forms Y3+ and nothing else in practice — Y2O3 in white LED phosphors, YBa2Cu3O7 in superconductors, yttrium-aluminum garnet (YAG) in laser crystals. Like scandium above it, it is a fixed-charge d-block metal.
| Element | Yttrium |
|---|---|
| Symbol | Y |
| Atomic number | 39 |
| Common ionic charge | +3 |
| Common ions | Y3+ |
Visual reference
Yttrium element image and atomic model
Images are used as visual references; charge rules still depend on the compound.
Where Yttrium's charge options come from
Yttrium is [Kr]4d1 5s2. All three outer electrons leave together to expose the krypton core, and no partially ionized state is worth stabilizing. Its radius and 3+ charge so resemble the heavier lanthanides that geologists find it in the same ores and chemists count it among the rare earths.
This is a classroom reference range, not an exhaustive list of all oxidation states.
The trap in Yttrium problems
Parsing YBa2Cu3O7 by guessing yttrium's charge. Yttrium is the reliable one: fix Y at +3 and Ba at +2 first, then oxygen's -14 forces the three coppers to average +2.33 — the mixed copper charge, not yttrium, is where that famous superconductor's action lives.
Worked example: Y in a formula problem
Y3+ in real compounds
YCl3
Yttrium chloride
Y3+ balances chloride ions.
Y2O3
Yttrium oxide
Yttrium can form oxides where total positive and negative charge balances.
Questions students ask about yttrium
Is yttrium named after a real place?
Ytterby, a Swedish quarry village that lends its name to four elements (yttrium, ytterbium, terbium, erbium) — all rare earths, all favoring the same 3+ charge, all first found in one mine's minerals.
What does Y3+ do in a YAG laser?
Y3+ builds the transparent garnet framework (Y3Al5O12); neodymium ions substituted onto a few yttrium sites do the lasing. The match works because Nd3+ carries the identical charge.
Why is yttrium-90 used against cancer?
Y-90 spheres deliver beta radiation directly inside liver tumors. Chemically the yttrium stays ordinary Y3+, embedded in glass; the therapy relies on its nucleus, not its charge.
How do I use this charge in formulas?
Combine positive and negative ions so the total charge is zero — or let the ionic compound calculator do the crossing for you. The full chart lives on the periodic table with charges.
Where this data comes from
Charges and element facts on this page are checked against the primary references below. Found an error? Email hello@periodictablewithcharges.com — corrections ship in the next content update. See how this site is edited.