What Are Silicon Wafers Used For?
Basically all integrated circuits are made from silicon.  Scientists are working on other materials, including Graphene to replace Silicon in
integrated circuits. But that is a ways off as scientists are currently also finding ways to stretch the laws of physics and
Moore's law to keep the inexpensive silicon integrated circuit around.
Solar Panels
The panels are made from silicon. Unlike ICs, solar silicon wafers do not  need a fine polished finish-which acts as a mirror. Solar wafers are often rough and dull in color. This is so they can capture as much sunlight as possible.
Medical Applications
Recently the rocket scientists, I mean MIT's biomedical engineers have
developed a fuel cell that runs on the same sugar that powers human cells: glucose. This glucose fuel cell could be used to drive highly efficient brain
implants of the future, which could help paralyzed patients move their arms and legs again.
The fuel cell, described in the June 12 edition of the journal PLoS ONE, strips electrons from glucose
molecules to create a small electric current. The researchers, led by Rahul Sarpeshkar, an associate professor of electrical engineering and
computer science at MIT, fabricated the fuel cell on a silicon chip, allowing it to be integrated with other circuits that would be needed for a brain implant.Â
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