Gallium is a soft, silvery metal used primarily in electronic circuits, semiconductors, and light-emitting diodes. It is also useful in high-temperature thermometers, barometers, pharmaceuticals and nuclear medicine tests. Let’s take a look at some facts about gallium arsenide at is pertains to a GaAs wafer.
Gallium Arsenide Facts
In nature, gallium is never found as a free element and cannot be found in a substantial amount in any minerals.
By weight, gallium makes up about 0.0019% of Earth's crust.
Most commercial gallium is extracted as a byproduct of aluminum and zinc production.
Atomic number: 31
Atomic weight: 69.723
Melting point: 85.57 degrees Fahrenheit
Gallium is used primarily in electronics.
95% of all gallium produced is used to make gallium arsenide (GaAs), a compound used in microwave and infrared circuits, semiconductors and blue and violet LEDs.
Gallium arsenide can produce laser light directly from electricity and is used in solar panels, including those on the Mars Exploration Rover.
Gallium is a post-transition metal.
Although it is a solid at room temperature Gallium is still so soft that you could cut it with a knife.
Gallium bonds easily with most metals and is commonly used to make low-melting alloys.
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