Gallium arsenide facts for kids
Gallium arsenide is a special chemical compound. Its chemical formula is GaAs. It is made of two different parts: gallium and arsenic. These parts join together to form a substance with unique properties.
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What is Gallium Arsenide?
Gallium arsenide is a chemical compound. It is made from the elements gallium and arsenic. In this compound, gallium has a +3 oxidation state. This means it has lost three electrons.
How Gallium Arsenide Looks and Acts
Gallium arsenide is a gray solid. It forms crystals that look like tiny cubes. It does not react much with water. However, it reacts quickly with acids. When it touches acid, it creates a gas called arsine. Gallium arsenide also slowly reacts with air. This process is called oxidation.
Making Gallium Arsenide
Scientists make gallium arsenide by combining other chemicals. They can react arsenic trichloride with gallium. Another way is to react pure arsenic with gallium.
How Gallium Arsenide is Used
Gallium arsenide is mostly used as a semiconductor. Semiconductors are materials that can conduct electricity better than insulators but not as well as metals. They are key parts of electronic devices.
Gallium arsenide has some advantages over silicon, which is another common semiconductor.
- Faster Electronics: Devices made with gallium arsenide can work faster.
- More Power: They can also handle more power.
- Efficient Lights: Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) made from gallium arsenide are very efficient. This means they turn more electricity into light and waste less as heat.
However, silicon also has its own benefits:
- Cheaper: Silicon is usually less expensive to produce.
- Better Insulators: Silicon can easily form silicon dioxide, which is a great insulator. Gallium arsenide does not form a good insulator.
- Less Power: Silicon semiconductors often use less power than gallium arsenide ones.
Related Pages
- Aluminium arsenide
- Gallium(III) oxide
Images for kids
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Gallium arsenide crystals
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Triple-junction GaAs cells covering MidSTAR-1
See also
In Spanish: Arseniuro de galio para niños
