Silicon carbide

Silicon carbide (SiC), also known as carborundum, is a hard chemical compound of silicon and carbon. A wide bandgap semiconductor, it occurs in nature as the extremely rare mineral moissanite, but has been mass-produced as powder and crystals since 1893 for use as an abrasive. Grains of silicon carbide can be bonded together by sintering to form very hard ceramics that are widely used in applications requiring high endurance, such as disc brakes, clutches and ballistic plates in bulletproof vests.

Large single crystals of silicon carbide can be grown by the Lely method and they can be cut into synthetic moissanite gemstones.

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