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1.3" Polished Silicon Egg - California
This is a 1.3" tall piece of high purity silicon produced in California. It was likely created by carbothermically reducing quartzite or sand with highly pure coke (grey, hard, and porous coal-based fuel with a high carbon content). The silicon has been shaped into an egg and polished to a glossy finish.
Silicon is a chemical element with symbol Si and atomic number 14. It is also a semiconductor, meaning that it does conduct electricity though, unlike a typical metal, silicon gets better at conducting electricity as the temperature increases (metals get worse at conductivity at higher temperatures).
Silicon makes up about 28% of the Earth's crust by mass and is the second most abundant element. It does not occur uncombined in nature but occurs chiefly as the oxide (silica) and as silicate minerals, these minerals account for 90% of the Earth's crust. Elemental silicon is produced commercially by reducing sand with carbon in an electric furnace.
Because silicon is an important element in high-technology semiconductor devices, many places in the world bear its name. For example, the Santa Clara Valley in California acquired the nickname Silicon Valley, as the element is the base material in the semiconductor industry there.
Silicon makes up about 28% of the Earth's crust by mass and is the second most abundant element. It does not occur uncombined in nature but occurs chiefly as the oxide (silica) and as silicate minerals, these minerals account for 90% of the Earth's crust. Elemental silicon is produced commercially by reducing sand with carbon in an electric furnace.
Because silicon is an important element in high-technology semiconductor devices, many places in the world bear its name. For example, the Santa Clara Valley in California acquired the nickname Silicon Valley, as the element is the base material in the semiconductor industry there.
