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Why is silicon a poor electrical conductor and copper a good conductor?
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
It is due to the availablity of "free electrons". All metals such as Copper can be considered as atomic nuclei surrounded by a "sea" of electrons which are free to move around with little resistance, which makes all metals good conductors of electricity (and heat, incidentally). In Silicon, a semiconductor, the electrons are mostly locked up into the silicon crystal lattice structure and free electrons are rare, occurring only when thermal effects release them temporarily from the lattice (leaving behind what is called a "hole"). These free electrons and holes occurring due to thermal effects are called "intrinsic carriers" and the hotter the silicon gets, the more of these intrinsic carriers there will be around. Thus with silicon and other semiconductors, electric current flows more easily (less resistance) as the material gets hotter, while the reverse is true for metals.
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
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Which would be the best insulator carbon or silicon or aluminum or oxygen?
Oxygen. Carbon as diamond is a good electrical insulator, (graphite is an electrical conductor), silicon is a semiconductor so has limited electrical conductivity and aluminium is a metal and a good electrical conductor.
Would a copper pipe work better as a conductor or an insulator?
Copper is a good conductor, that's why it is used to make electrical wire.
Is silicon a good heat conductor?
no sillicon is not a good conductor of heat and electricity.
Is copper a good conductor of heat and electricity?
yes copper is a good conductor of heat only becuase it comes in the conductor of heat
What else apart from electricity is copper a conductor of?
Copper is a very good conductor of heat.
Is a copper nail a conductor insulator?
Copper is a good electrical and thermal conductor.
Copper is a good electrical what?
Conductor
Why is silicon a good heat conductor but a poor electrical conductor?
Metals are actually good conductors of both heat and electricity... but silicon is a semi-conductor. Unlike metals, which are good electrical and heat conductors, crystalline solids such as diamond and semiconductors such as silicon are good heat conductors but poor electrical conductors. This is their nature... you can't change it :-)
Which would be the best insulator carbon or silicon or aluminum or oxygen?
Oxygen. Carbon as diamond is a good electrical insulator, (graphite is an electrical conductor), silicon is a semiconductor so has limited electrical conductivity and aluminium is a metal and a good electrical conductor.
Do copper carry current?
Yes, copper is a good electrical conductor.
Would a copper pipe work better as a conductor or an insulator?
Copper is a good conductor, that's why it is used to make electrical wire.
Is ferous metal good conductor of electrical?
A *ferrous* metal is a good conductor, but not as good as copper, silver or aluminum.
Is copper a good electricity conductor?
Yea it is! That is why most of electrical wires are made of Copper!
Why is copper wire the best known conductor?
The best electrical conductor known is silver, not copper. Electrical resistivity of silver: 1,59.10-8 ohm.m Electrical resistivity of copper: 1,68.10-8 ohm.m A good electrical conductor has a very low electrical resistivity and a high electrical conductivity (the same principles for the thermal conductivity).
Why is silicon a good conductor of electricity?
Silicon is not a good conductor. It is a semiconductor.
Why wires are made of cooper?
Electrical wires are made from copper, as copper is a good conductor of electricity.
Why is copper a good conductor?
Copper is a good conductor to to it's mixed-valence Cu(II)/Cu(III) oxides which gives it zero electrical resistance.
