Tellurium

Tellurium is a key component in compound semiconductors such as Cadmium Telluride (CdTe) for photovoltaic cells and Bismuth Telluride for thermoelectric cooling devices.

Added to steel and copper alloys to improve machinability and to lead to increase its resistance to sulfuric acid corrosion.

Used as a high-purity sputtering target material for the deposition of thin films in phase-change memory (PRAM) and optical data storage media.

Utilized in the fabrication of infrared optical coatings and chalcogenide glasses due to its unique refractive properties in the IR spectrum.