While silicon may have been responsible for the revolution in the microchip industry, the human race would never have reached such a degree of sophistication in electronics if it was not for a class of often overlooked elements.
The 15 lanthanides — displayed offset below the rest of the periodic table — along with scandium and yttrium make up the so-called “rare-earth elements,” which are present in a wide range of devices used today, from smartphones to jet engines. And these metals are now more in demand than ever.
A report from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) revealed, in...
