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Beyond Six Nines: Silicon Enrichment Apparatus

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Silicon enrichment apparatus
Part of the silicon enrichment apparatus. At this angle, the canister of silane gas (SiH4) containing natural abundance silicon is visible. Once the silicon is ionized, it passes through a magnetic field, which causes the different isotopes – 28Si, 29Si, and 30Si – to diverge into separate beams based on their mass.
Created August 8, 2014, Updated October 1, 2018