passivate

verb

pas·​siv·​ate ˈpa-si-ˌvāt 

passivated; passivating

transitive verb

1

: to make inactive or less reactive

passivate the surface of steel by chemical treatment

2

: to protect (something, such as a solid-state device) against contamination by coating or surface treatment

passivation

ˌpa-si-ˈvā-shən 

noun

Examples of passivate in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Engineers had mastered the technical steps of making silicon wafers, diffusing diode junctions, applying metal grids to the solar-cell surfaces, passivating the semiconductor surface to add an antireflective coating, and laminating modules. —David Fork, IEEE Spectrum, 28 June 2021

Word History

First Known Use

1913, in the meaning defined at sense 1