Definition of "neodymium" []

• A bright, silvery rare-earth metal element, found in monazite and bastnaesite and used for coloring glass and for doping some glass lasers. Atomic number 60; atomic weight 144.24; melting point 1,024°C; boiling point 3,027°C; specific gravity 6.80 or 7.004 (depending on allotropic form); valence 3. See Table at element. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The magnets, manufactured mostly in China, were called neodymium magnets."
• "It takes 2-4 pounds per Prius, and Japan has had to buy much of their neodymium from the Chinese black market."
• "The U.S. has become almost completely dependent on China for rare earth metals, including neodymium, which is used in hard disk drive magnets, according to testimony at a congressional hearing last month."