Silicon Carbide Density and Applications

Silicon carbide, also referred to as carborundum, is a compound composed of pure silicon and carbon. This ceramic material possesses many useful properties including abrasive resistance, high temperature stability and wide band gap semiconductor capabilities.

American Elements offers high purity, ACS Reagent Grade and Technical Grade SiC in standard and customized packaging options. Please reach out for more information!

High Hardness

Silicon carbide ranks among the hardest of ceramic materials. Furthermore, its hardness remains relatively unaffected at elevated temperatures – making it suitable for high-temperature applications like high-temperature heating elements in far-infrared generators and chemical reactors. Furthermore, silicon carbide resists wear from frictional forces well, making it suitable for mechanical seals used in pump systems as well as being ideal for use sandblasting injection nozzles and heating elements in far-infrared generators.

Silicon carbide production typically involves high-temperature smelting of raw materials like quartz sand and petroleum coke (or coal coke) in a resistance furnace, producing green silicon carbide which is then ground into powder form before being compressed into granules, further ground and purified to produce final product.

Granulated SiC is either reaction bonded or directly sintered to produce various grades, with reaction bonded forming lower costs but coarser grain for higher use temperatures and wear resistance than direct sintered. Vapor deposition offers an effective means of producing more pure forms of the material for certain applications, yielding more consistent microstructure with reduced impurities, which enhances radiation hardness. SiC’s high radiation hardness makes it particularly advantageous in electronics applications where its atomic structure contributes to electron and proton scattering on surfaces, as well as prolonging device lifespan when exposed to prolonged radiation exposure.

High Thermal Conductivity

Silicon carbide is an extremely thermally conductive material. It conducts four times more heat than boron carbide and over ten times as much heat as diamond, thanks to its carbon atoms forming a covalent bond to one silicon atom at the center of its crystal structure – making it an excellent choice for high temperature applications.

Additionally, ceramic material is highly corrosion-resistant and can withstand harsh chemical environments that might occur in paper production, energy technology and steel processing facilities. Furthermore, its low boiling point and melting point makes it safe to use as ceramic material.

Soda lime glass (SOG) can be doped with nitrogen or phosphorus to form an n-type semiconductor, while beryllium, boron, aluminum and gallium can be added for p-type applications. SOG is often chosen over silicon nitride (SiN) due to its higher surface area.

Not only is silicone an exceptional thermal conductor, it is also an invaluable reinforcement material for rubber composites. Silicon can increase stiffness and abrasion resistance of the rubber while simultaneously decreasing curing time and temperature; additionally it may reduce energy required for curing by more evenly dispersion of curing agent throughout its compound – ideal qualities that make this material perfect for tire production, industrial linings production and other demanding conditions applications.

Wide Band Gap

Silicon carbide boasts a larger band gap than conventional semiconductor materials, making it the ideal material for power devices that demand high operating temperatures, higher switching frequencies, and increased energy efficiency. Furthermore, silicon carbide makes an excellent material choice for building integrated circuits (ICs) to facilitate power electronics, computer components, RF systems, optoelectronic advancements, etc.

Its unique structure comprises hexagonal layers of silicon and carbon atoms arranged in face-centered cubic (FCC) lattices. Atomic bonding gives this material an exceptionally high bond strength, creating covalent networks across its surface – leading to an exceptionally wide band gap of 3.26 eV.

Wide energy band gaps enable an increase in electron-hole pair excitation within a material, and allow photons to form by recombining with electron-hole pairs; the light produced as a result is known as luminescence.

WBG semiconductors feature high breakdown voltages that enable them to work effectively at higher temperatures, leading to increased power density and superior efficiency. As a result, power devices based on silicon carbide can be constructed using smaller heat sinks and cooler systems, permitting more compact form factors.

Navitas GeneSiC offers a variety of patented devices, such as SiC Schottky diodes and junction transistors capable of handling voltages of up to 1200 V. To discover how you can incorporate this powerful yet efficient material into your next design project, contact us now.

Lightweight

Silicon carbide is an extremely hard and flexible material capable of withstanding high temperatures and stresses while remaining lightweight, making it suitable for various applications. Silicon carbide can be found in composite materials such as carbon fiber-reinforced silicon carbide (CFRC), found in automotive brakes as well as ceramic plates used for bulletproof vests. Furthermore, Chobham armor, used by military vehicles to withstand enemy fire strikes is also made out of silicon carbide material that can resist high velocity impacts from enemy weapons.

SiC has excellent corrosion resistance and can operate in harsh environments without incurring damage, such as high temperature environments and chemical presence such as hydrofluoric acid, sodium fluoride and acetone. Furthermore, its strength remains undamaged even under high levels of humidity without degradation to its integrity.

Silicon carbide in its pure state acts as an insulator; however, it can be made to conduct electricity with controlled addition of impurities, known as dopants. Doping with aluminum, boron or gallium creates a p-type semiconductor while adding nitrogen or phosphorus dopants yield an N-type semiconductor which may achieve superconductivity under certain circumstances.

Silicon carbide is an indispensable material in advanced materials research and production. With its superior properties, silicon carbide has the ability to replace silicon semiconductors in demanding electronic applications such as power electronics for terrestrial electric vehicles or instruments on space exploration vehicles such as rovers or probes (Mantooth, Zetterling & Rusu). Furthermore, this material’s long-term reliability and efficiency make it an excellent candidate for use in solar energy systems that demand long-term reliability and efficiency (Mantooth et al).