semiconductor

noun

semi·con·duc·tor | \ ˌse-mē-kən-ˈdək-tər

, ˌse-ˌmī-, -mi-\

Definition of semiconductor

: any of a class of solids (such as germanium or silicon) whose electrical conductivity is between that of a conductor and that of an insulator in being nearly as great as that of a metal at high temperatures and nearly absent at low temperatures

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Did You Know?

A semiconductor is a crystal material whose ability to conduct electricity rises as its temperature goes up. That is, it sometimes acts as a conductor and sometimes as an insulator. Its conducting ability can be much increased by chemical treatment. A manufactured chip of silicon, less than half an inch square, may contain millions of microscopic transistors, which can serve control and memory functions when installed in a computer, automobile, cell phone, DVD player, or microwave oven.

Examples of semiconductor in a Sentence

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The semiconductor company, founded in 1965, deals with data conversion and signal processing. — Fortune, "Analog Devices," 1 July 2019 In addition to reducing size, metalenses should ultimately lower the cost of optical components because the diminutive lenses can be manufactured with the same equipment already used in the semiconductor industry. — Alberto Moscatelli, Scientific American, "Tiny Lenses Will Enable Design of Miniature Optical Devices," 1 July 2019 Such an agreement would relieve pressure from companies that do business or buy supplies from China—such as semiconductor companies and certain retailers. — Corrie Driebusch, WSJ, "S&P 500 Posts Best First Half in 22 Years," 28 June 2019 Engineers control the band gap (that is, the color) by changing the properties of the semiconductor. — Quanta Magazine, "The Math That Promises to Make the World Brighter," 6 Sep. 2017 Foxconn board members elected Young Liu, the head of the Foxconn’s semiconductor division, as Gou’s successor. — Johnson Lai, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Foxconn chairman Terry Gou stepping down amid talks of political bid," 21 June 2019 On the digital frontier, the administration needs to heed the semiconductor industry’s warning against agreeing to large Chinese purchases of U.S. chips as part of a trade deal. — Christopher R. O'dea, National Review, "How China Weaponized the Global Supply Chain," 20 June 2019 Atlazo is developing a new kind of semiconductor chip that comes with built-in artificial intelligence and machine learning — functions that normally take place in the cloud. — Brittany Meiling, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Chip startup founded by ex-Qualcomm execs gets millions from San Diego angel investors," 13 June 2019 That’s just one of many potential consequences as the US clampdown ripples through everything from semiconductor supplies to ambitions for self-driving cars. — John Detrixhe, Quartz, "The unintended consequences of Trump’s ban on Huawei are starting to appear," 8 June 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'semiconductor.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

11 Jul 2019

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Time Traveler for semiconductor

The first known use of semiconductor was in 1838

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More Definitions for semiconductor

semiconductor

noun

English Language Learners Definition of semiconductor

: a material or object that allows some electricity or heat to move through it and that is used especially in electronic devices

See the full definition for semiconductor in the English Language Learners Dictionary

semiconductor

noun

semi·con·duc·tor | \ ˌse-mi-kən-ˈdək-tər

Kids Definition of semiconductor

: a solid substance that conducts electricity imperfectly

semiconductor

noun

semi·con·duc·tor | \ -kən-ˈdək-tər

Medical Definition of semiconductor

: any of a class of solids (as germanium or silicon) whose electrical conductivity is between that of a conductor and that of an insulator in being nearly as great as that of a metal at high temperatures and nearly absent at low temperatures