American Elements: Electro-optic Crystal Supplier & Tech Info

Electro-optic is a line solid used in photo optic applications. Additional technical, research and safety (MSDS) information is available as is a Reference Calculator for converting relevant units of measurement.

Lanthanum is a Block F, Group 3, Period 6 element. The electronic configuration is [Xe] 5d¹ 6s². In its elemental form lanthanum 's CAS number is 7439-91-0. The lanthanum atom has a radius of 187.pm and it's Van der Waals radius is 200.pm. Lanthanum is one of the products manufactured and distributed under the tradename AE Rare Earths.

Gallium is a Block P, Group 13, Period 4 element. The electronic configuration is [Ar] 3d¹⁰ 4s² 4p¹. In its elemental form gallium's CAS number is 7440-55-3. The gallium atom has a radius of 122.1.pm and it's Van der Waals radius is 187.pm. Gallium is one of three elements that naturally occur as a liquid at room temperature. The other two are mercury and cesium. The application of gallium that has received the most attention is the production of semiconducting compounds. Of these, the most important are the compounds of gallium with antimony, arsenic or phosphor.

Silicon is a Block P, Group 14, Period 3 element. The electronic configuration is [Ne] 3s² 3p². In its elemental form silicon's CAS number is 7440-21-3. The silicon atom has a radius of 117.6.pm and it's Van der Waals radius is 210.pm. Silicon is one of man's most useful elements. It makes up 25.7% of the earth's crust, by weight, and is the second most abundant element, being exceeded only by oxygen. The Czochralski process is commonly used to produce single crystals of silicon used for solid-state or semiconductor devices. Silica, as sand, is a principal ingredient of glass, one of the most inexpensive of materials with excellent mechanical, optical, thermal, and electrical properties.

American Elements semi conducting materials are structures produced from ultra high purity starting materials synthesized by our high purity production facility which includes several large electric muffle furnaces, a tube furnace for hydrogen reduction, 50 gallon glass-lined Pfaudler reactors supported by our analytical laboratory containing X-ray diffraction, SEM, AA, BET surface area, and ICP Spectrometry for trace metals analysis. See a discussion of American Elements Ultra High Purity and Analytical capabilities. See Growth for processes used to fabricate semiconductor materials, which include:

"pulling" by the Czochaiski method for production of semiconductor materials
Flux growth and gradient freeze
Directional solidification of fluorites using both the Bridgman-Stockbarger and float zoning techniques