Silicon
hideSilicon (pronounced /ˈsɪlɨkən/ or /ˈsɪlɨkɒn/, Latin: silicium) is the most common metalloid. It is a chemical element, which has the symbol Si and atomic number 14. The atomic mass is 28.0855. A tetravalent metalloid, silicon is less reactive than its chemical analog carbon. As the eighth most common element in the universe by mass, silicon very rarely occurs as the pure free element in nature, but is more widely distributed in dusts, planetoids and planets as various forms of silicon dioxide (silica) or silicates. On Earth, silicon is the second most abundant element (after oxygen) in the crust, making up 25.7% of the crust by mass.
Silicon has many industrial uses. It is the principal component of most semiconductor devices, most importantly integrated circuits or microchips. Silicon is widely used in semiconductors because it remains a semiconductor at higher temperatures than the semiconductor germanium and because its native oxide is easily grown in a furnace and forms a better semiconductor/dielectric interface than any other material.
In the form of silica and silicates, silicon forms useful glasses, cements, and ceramics. It is also a constituent of silicones, a class-name for various synthetic plastic substances made of silicon, oxygen, carbon and hydrogen, often confused with silicon itself.
Silicon is an essential element in biology, although only tiny traces of it appear to be required by animals. It is much more important to the metabolism of plants, particularly many grasses, and silicic acid (a type of silica) forms the basis of the striking array of protective shells of the microscopic diatoms.
For more information about Silicon, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
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News tagged with silicon
New silicon-germanium nanowires could lead to smaller, more powerful electronic devices
Dec 09, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Microchip manufacturers have long faced challenges miniaturizing transistors, the key active components in nearly every modern electronic device, which are used to amplify or switch electronic signals.
Innovation puts next-generation solar cells on the horizon
Dec 01, 2009 |
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In a world first, a Monash University-led international research team has developed an innovative way to boost the output of the next generation of solar cells.
Spin polarization achieved in room temperature silicon
Nov 27, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A group in The Netherlands has achieved a first: injection of spin-polarized electrons in silicon at room temperature. This has previously been observed only at extremely low temperatures, ...
Nanowires key to future transistors, electronics
Nov 26, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A new generation of ultrasmall transistors and more powerful computer chips using tiny structures called semiconducting nanowires are closer to reality after a key discovery by researchers ...
Small optical force can budge nanoscale objects
Nov 17, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Engineering researchers have used a very tiny beam of light with as little as 1 milliwatt of power to move a silicon structure up to 12 nanometers.
Close-up movie shows hidden details in the birth of super-suns (w/ Video)
Nov 16, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The constellation of Orion is a hotbed of massive star formation, most prominently in the Great Nebula that sits in Orion's sword. The glowing gas of the Nebula is powered by a group of young ...
Tech blog, Singapore startup feud over tablet PC
Electronics / Consumer & Gadgets
Dec 11, 2009 |
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(AP) -- About 18 months ago, a technology blogger got fed up with the industry and forged an alliance with a startup to make his dream computer. It almost worked.
Light-generating transistors to power labs on chips
Dec 11, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- What started out as 'blue-sky' thinking by a group of European researchers could ultimately lead to the commercial mass production of a new generation of optoelectronic components for devices ...
Microscopic gyroscopes, the key for motion sensing
Dec 09, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Tiny devices made possible by combining the latest advances in mechanical and electronics technology could be at the heart of next-generation personal navigation and vehicle stabilisation ...
Life after silicon: Using exotic materials to help microchips keep improving
Dec 08, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The huge increases in the power and capacity of computers, cell phones and communications networks in the last 40 years have been the result of ever-shrinking silicon transistors. But silicon ...
Wizard at circuits, physics
Dec 03, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Donhee Ham, Gordon McKay Professor of Electrical Engineering and Applied Physics, uses his personal energy and understanding of physics to design innovative integrated circuits.
Water droplets direct self-assembly process in thin-film materials
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Nov 23, 2009 |
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You can think of it as origami - very high-tech origami. Researchers at the University of Illinois have developed a technique for fabricating three-dimensional, single-crystalline silicon structures from thin films by coupling ...
IBM scientists create rapid disease diagnostic chip (w/ Video)
Chemistry / Analytical Chemistry
Nov 19, 2009 |
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IBM scientists have created a one-step point-of-care-diagnostic test, based on an innovative silicon chip, that requires less sample volume, is significantly faster, portable, easy to use, and can test for ...
Researchers create 'fly paper' to capture circulating cancer cells
Nov 18, 2009 |
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Just as fly paper captures insects, an innovative new device with nano-sized features developed by researchers at UCLA is able to grab cancer cells in the blood that have broken off from a tumor.
Sezmi offers a new kind of TV service
Nov 17, 2009 |
4 / 5 (2) |
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Sezmi, a Silicon Valley startup that's pioneering a new type of TV service, is opening up a public test of its system Monday in California.
