SiO₂ 99.90%–99.99% quartz grit and powder — sourced from audited Indian producers, supplied to semiconductor, photovoltaic and precision materials manufacturers with full batch traceability.
Industry Overview
The semiconductor and photovoltaic industries are among the most demanding consumers of mineral raw materials in the world. Both depend on silicon — and silicon depends on ultra-pure quartz as its primary feedstock. Even trace-level contamination at the parts-per-million scale can compromise device yield, wafer integrity and solar cell efficiency.
In semiconductor wafer production, quartz is used to manufacture the crucibles, diffusion tubes, rods and flanges that come into direct contact with molten silicon during the Czochralski crystal growth process. Any metallic impurity in the quartz transfers into the silicon melt and creates crystal defects that degrade transistor performance. The specification is unforgiving: iron below 5 ppm, titanium below 10 ppm, aluminium below 30 ppm, calcium below 10 ppm.
In solar photovoltaic manufacturing, high-purity quartz sand is used as a silica feedstock in the carbothermic reduction process that produces metallurgical-grade silicon, which is further refined to solar-grade polysilicon for PV cell production. PIME's electronics-grade range — 99.90% to 99.99% SiO₂ with full CoA — covers both applications.
Key Applications
From crucible manufacturing to polysilicon feedstock, PIME's high-purity quartz serves the full value chain of the global semiconductor and photovoltaic industries.
The Czochralski (CZ) process for single-crystal silicon growth requires quartz crucibles capable of withstanding temperatures above 1,400°C while holding a silicon melt with essentially zero contamination contribution. Crucible manufacturers fuse high-purity quartz grit at elevated temperature. Any metallic impurity in the feedstock quartz will transfer into the silicon ingot and manifest as crystal defects in the finished wafer.
Beyond crucibles, quartz is essential for producing the process tubes, rods, flanges and boat carriers used throughout semiconductor fabrication. These components operate at high temperature in direct proximity to silicon wafers during oxidation, diffusion and deposition steps. Their purity directly influences the cleanliness of the process environment.
Solar-grade polysilicon is produced via the Siemens or fluidised bed reactor process, starting from high-purity silicon produced by carbothermic reduction of SiO₂. The purity of the quartz feedstock directly determines the efficiency ceiling of the final PV cell. Even at the solar-grade threshold (SiO₂ ≥99.90%), trace element control is essential to avoid efficiency-robbing defects.
Finely processed high-purity quartz powder (200–325 mesh) is used in the fabrication of specialised electronics materials where purity combined with particle size control is essential — including quartz epoxy encapsulants for ICs, precision ceramic substrates, and optical glass formulations.
Technical Specifications
The following table sets out the key chemical and physical parameters for PIME's electronics-grade and solar-grade quartz grit, as reported on our Certificate of Analysis.
| Parameter | Electronics Grade (EG) | Solar Grade (SG) | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|
| SiO₂ Content | ≥99.99% | ≥99.90% | Primary purity specification; determines feedstock suitability for fused quartz and polysilicon production. |
| Iron (Fe) | <5 ppm Critical | <15 ppm | Fe is the most damaging metallic contaminant in silicon devices — acts as a recombination centre, drastically reducing minority carrier lifetime and device efficiency. |
| Aluminium (Al) | <30 ppm | <50 ppm | Al is a p-type dopant in silicon. Elevated Al introduces uncontrolled background doping, shifting device threshold voltages and degrading n-type wafer resistivity. |
| Titanium (Ti) | <10 ppm | <20 ppm | Ti forms deep-level trap states within the silicon bandgap, reducing minority carrier lifetime. Even at 10 ppm it measurably impacts wafer quality. |
| Calcium (Ca) | <10 ppm | <30 ppm | Ca impacts crucible viscosity during fused quartz production and can cause localised devitrification, weakening the crucible structure under thermal cycling. |
| Sodium (Na) | <5 ppm | <20 ppm | Na is a mobile ion — particularly damaging in MOS device gate oxide stability and a common cause of threshold voltage drift in CMOS circuits. |
| Boron (B) | <1 ppm | <2 ppm | B is a p-type dopant — even sub-ppm levels shift resistivity in high-purity float-zone silicon. Critical for n-type wafer production. |
| Electrical Conductivity (EC) | <5 µS/cm Key QC | <10 µS/cm | EC is a rapid, holistic indicator of total ionic contamination. ASTM and industry practice requires EC <5 µS/cm for electronics-grade qualification. Tested by dissolution in deionised water. |
| Al₂O₃ + Fe₂O₃ + TiO₂ | <0.010% | <0.050% | Combined oxide sum; reported alongside individual element ppm values as a corroborating purity check. |
| Moisture | <0.1% | <0.3% | Low moisture prevents re-agglomeration during storage and transport and is required by arc-fusion furnace operators. |
| Grain Size (available) | 0.1–0.5 mm, 0.5–1.0 mm | 1.0–2.0 mm, 2.0–4.0 mm | Electronics-grade supplied in fine fractions for crucible manufacture; solar-grade in coarser fractions for carbothermic reduction furnaces. |
All values are maximum limits reported on CoA per production batch. Contact PIME for current CoA examples and to discuss application-specific tolerances.
Available Grades
PIME supplies high-purity quartz grit in four standard grain size fractions, each suited to different stages of the electronics and solar manufacturing value chain. Custom fractions can be discussed against confirmed orders.
Fine fraction for quartz crucible manufacturing by arc fusion, quartz tube drawing and precision fused silica components. SiO₂ ≥99.99%.
Standard crucible-grade grit for Czochralski silicon growth crucibles and diffusion tube forming. Most widely specified by quartz fabricators.
Mid-size fraction for solar-grade polysilicon feedstock and larger fused silica components. Consistent sizing ensures uniform arc-fusion or reduction kinetics.
Coarse fraction for carbothermic reduction furnaces in metallurgical and solar-grade silicon production. Optimised for charge bed porosity and gas flow.
Supply Model
Sourcing high-purity quartz from a transparent, audit-backed intermediary is not merely a convenience — for electronics and solar buyers, it directly manages the risk of contamination through the supply chain.
Spot-buying from unknown exporters introduces purity risk that no amount of incoming inspection can fully eliminate — because contamination may occur at the mine, the processing plant, during bagging or in transit. PIME mitigates this through:
Our Certificate of Analysis reports SiO₂ %, individual trace elements by ICP-OES (Fe, Al, Ti, Ca, Na, K, B, Mg), electrical conductivity (EC in µS/cm), moisture, grain size distribution and bulk density — the complete set of parameters required by electronics and solar buyers.
Unlike brokers who opportunistically switch producers to meet price, PIME maintains long-term supply relationships with specific audited producers. This means you receive product from a known, characterised source — not whatever was available at port.
As an independently owned Australian trading house, PIME's principals are directly involved in producer selection, quality sign-off and documentation. You deal with people who have seen the mine, the processing plant and the laboratory — not a sales team with no technical access.
India to Australia transit is typically 18–25 days. PIME manages export documentation, quality inspection, container booking and import customs to minimise procurement time for electronics buyers across Australia and the broader Asia-Pacific region.
Common Questions
For crucible-grade quartz used in Czochralski silicon growth, the critical limits are: SiO₂ ≥99.99%, Fe <5 ppm, Al <30 ppm, Ti <10 ppm, Ca <10 ppm, Na <5 ppm, B <1 ppm, and EC <5 µS/cm. PIME verifies compliance through ICP-OES (Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry) analysis conducted at an accredited laboratory on a representative sample from each production batch. The analysis report is included as part of the Certificate of Analysis issued with every shipment. Buyers who require third-party confirmation can request that PIME arrange pre-shipment testing by a nominated independent laboratory — this is included in the commercial offering for electronics-grade orders above 5 MT.
PIME's Certificate of Analysis for electronics-grade quartz grit includes: production batch/lot number, date of manufacture and sampling, SiO₂ % (by gravimetric or XRF), individual trace element concentrations by ICP-OES (minimum: Fe, Al, Ti, Ca, Na, K, Mg, B), electrical conductivity (EC in µS/cm), moisture content (% at 105°C), grain size fraction (sieve analysis with % passing for key mesh sizes), bulk density (kg/m³), and name and accreditation details of the testing laboratory. The CoA is provided as a signed PDF document. It accompanies the shipping documentation and is also emailed directly to the buyer's QA contact prior to vessel departure. We can provide example CoAs from current production runs on request.
The standard minimum order quantity (MOQ) for electronics-grade quartz grit is 5 metric tonnes (5,000 kg) per grade fraction, reflecting the cost of dedicated sampling, ICP-OES analysis and documentation for this purity tier. However, PIME understands that new customers require qualification testing before committing to a commercial volume. We offer qualification samples of 5–25 kg accompanied by a full CoA, available to genuine industrial buyers against a written request on company letterhead. These samples are representative of the current production lot from which any commercial order would be fulfilled — not from a separately prepared or cherry-picked sample. Please contact us with your company details, application description and the specific trace element limits you need to meet.
For electronics-grade and solar-grade quartz grit orders, the total lead time from purchase order confirmation to delivery at an Australian port is typically 8–12 weeks, broken down as follows: production and processing at the Indian facility (2–4 weeks, depending on order size and current queue), pre-shipment sampling and ICP-OES analysis (5–7 business days), export documentation and customs clearance in India (5–10 business days), and ocean transit India to Australia (18–25 days). For repeat orders from the same producer and grade, lead time may be shorter where product is held in pre-production stock. PIME will provide a firm delivery estimate at the time of quotation, along with a milestone schedule. For time-critical orders, please discuss requirements with us at the enquiry stage so that we can assess production slot availability.
Get Started
Tell us your application, required SiO₂ purity, trace element limits and grain size. PIME will respond with a product CoA example, a qualification sample offer and indicative pricing within two business days.