silicon

See also: Silicon and silicón

English

Chemical element
Si Previous: aluminium (Al)
Next: phosphorus (P)

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈsɪlɪkən/, /ˈsɪləkɑn/
  • Audio (US)(file)

Etymology 1

From the stem of Latin silex (“flint, silica”) + -on from carbon.

Noun

silicon (usually uncountable, plural silicons)

  1. (chemistry, uncountable) A nonmetallic element (symbol Si) with an atomic number of 14 and atomic weight of 28.0855.
    • 1970, James W[alter] Mayer; Lennart Eriksson; John A[rthur] Davies, “General Features of Ion Implantation”, in Ion Implantation in Semiconductors: Silicon and Germanium, New York, N.Y.: Academic Press, OCLC 912401876, page 5:
      The isolated disordered regions and the amorphous layer have widely different anneal behavior. In the case of germanium and silicon, the isolated disordered regions anneal at moderate temperatures of approximately 200° and 300° C, respectively. The amorphous layers also anneal in a characteristic fashion, but at appreciably higher temperatures, i.e., at approximately 600° C in silicon and 400° C in germanium.
  2. (chemistry, countable) A single atom of this element.
Usage notes

Do not confuse silicon with silicone.

Synonyms
Derived terms
Translations

See also

Etymology 2

From the silicon chips used in computers

Noun

silicon (uncountable)

  1. (slang) computing
  2. (slang) computer processor
  3. Abbreviation of silicon chip.

Further reading

  • “Silicon” in David Barthelmy, Webmineral Mineralogy Database, 1997–.
  • silicon mindat.org‎, Hudson Institute of Mineralogy, accessed 29 August 2016

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French silicone.

Noun

silicon m (plural siliconi)

  1. (chemistry) silicone

Declension

Noun

silicon n (plural silicoane)

  1. (informal, chiefly in the plural) breast implant

Declension

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