silicon

noun

sil·​i·​con ˈsi-li-kən  ˈsi-lə-ˌkän 

: a tetravalent nonmetallic element with atomic number 14 that occurs combined as the most abundant element next to oxygen in the earth's crust and is used especially in semiconductors, in ferrosilicon for steelmaking, and in other alloys

—often used before another noun

silicon chips

silicon carbide

see Chemical Elements Table

Examples of silicon in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

On the call, it was mentioned that its 3nm custom silicon will ship in the second half of 2025. —Beth Kindig, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2024

One transistor is silicon and provides fast readout; the other stores the data without needing refreshing, and is based on an oxide semiconductor. —IEEE Spectrum, 16 Dec. 2024

The rest is an extremely porous material made mostly of silicon and oxygen. —Ari Daniel, NPR, 9 Dec. 2024

The semiconductor firm is a juggernaut working in the data center with Jensen Huang’s Nvidia to provide optical connectivity tech, but also with Amazon Web Services on its custom silicon — and apparently Alphabet’s Google and Microsoft, too. —Jim Cramer, CNBC, 4 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

New Latin silica + English -on (as in carbon)

First Known Use

1814, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing silicon

• silicon carbide
• silicon dioxide
• silicon nitride

Kids Definition

silicon

noun

sil·​i·​con ˈsil-i-kən 

ˈsil-ə-ˌkän

: a nonmetallic element that occurs combined as the most abundant element after oxygen in the earth's crust and is used especially in alloys and electronic devices see element

Medical Definition

silicon

noun

sil·​i·​con ˈsil-i-kən  ˈsil-ə-ˌkän 

: a tetravalent nonmetallic element that occurs combined as the most abundant element next to oxygen in the earth's crust and is used especially in alloys

—symbol Si see Chemical Elements Table