Chapter 1
From beach sand to pure silicon
Chapter 2
Designing the microscopic city
Chapter 3
Printing with light in the cleanroom
Chapter 4
Slicing, packaging, and testing the final chip
Ch 1 · From beach sand to pure silicon
Quiz
What is the name of the cylindrical solid crystal block of silicon before it is sliced?
steve Metallurgical silicon must be refined further until it reaches an astonishing purity level of 99.999999999%.
steve From Sand to Silicon
Melt the sand to grow a crystal bright, (growing so bright!) / Slice it thin to make the circuits glow! (yeah, that's right!)
steve A single crystal of silicon is grown from molten liquid using the Czochralski method.
Quiz
What is the standard diameter of the largest silicon wafers used in modern factories?
Fun Fact
Silicon purity: If a silicon wafer were the size of the United States, the maximum allowed impurity would be smaller than a single coin.
Glossary
silicon (noun)
A chemical element of atomic number 14, a metalloid widely used in making electronic circuits. Raw silica sand is chemically refined to achieve an ultra-high purity of 99.9999999 percent.
A chemical element of atomic number 14, a metalloid widely used in making electronic circuits. Raw silica sand is chemically refined to achieve an ultra-high purity of 99.9999999 percent.