silicon: Quick Facts

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Oct. 26, 2026

News •

Tiny holes in silicon modulator create 'slow light' for more efficient data signal conversion • Oct. 22, 2026, 11:30 AM ET (Tech Xplore)

Silicon qubits surpass 99.99% gate fidelity while operating three at once • Oct. 15, 2026, 5:20 PM ET (Phys.org)

Facts

Also Known As	Si

Photos and Videos

A periodic table element square for silicon shows atomic number 14, symbol Si, atomic weight range, electron configuration, and name. Icons indicate it is a solid nonmetal with diamond crystal structure and equal relative strength. Labels explain each property.

Jöns Jacob Berzelius

A pie chart showing the mineral composition of Earth's crust, with oxygen at 46.6 percent, silicon at 27.7 percent, aluminum at 8.1 percent, iron at 5 percent, and smaller segments for calcium, sodium, potassium, magnesium, and other metals.

Diagram showing the cycling of silica in the marine environment, with arrows illustrating processes such as river influx, inorganic adsorption, biological fixation by radiolarian and diatom skeletons, dissolution, deposition as opaline skeletal debris, upwelling, and hydrothermal activity, all within labeled ocean zones.

Engineer in a cleanroom suit and white gloves holds a large silicon wafer for inspection, with laboratory equipment and a microscope visible in the background.

Close-up view of a silicon computer wafer showing a grid of small, colorful, reflective microchips with intricate patterns and circuitry.

solar energy; solar cell

Learn about the mining and purification of silicon

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Topics

silicon-29 silicon-30 amorphous silicon silicon-28 surface reconstruction silicon detector hydrogenated amorphous silicon Takayanagi 7×7 structure hydrosilation chemical element hydrogen carbon sodium nitrogen sulfur phosphorus boron iodine fluorine zinc

Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

materials science: Silicon

Key People

Jöns Jacob Berzelius

Jöns Jacob Berzelius

Swedish chemist

Frederick Becket

Frederick Mark Becket

American metallurgist

Periodic Table of the elements concept image (chemistry)

Facts You Should Know: The Periodic Table Quiz

battery. Illustration of battery connected to lightbulb. Power a light bulb with a battery. Battery, Power Supply, Science, Circuit, Currents

Electricity: Short Circuits & Direct Currents

Concept artwork on the periodic table of elements.

118 Names and Symbols of the Periodic Table Quiz