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13:3313:33, 2 August 2026 Marcasite (hist | edit) [1,674 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "thumb|right|frame|Marcasite from Wheal Unity, Gwennap * Lustre:Metallic, Sub-Metallic * Transparency:Opaque * Colour:Pale brass-yellow, tin-white on fresh exposures. * Streak:Dark-gray to black. * Hardness:6 - 6½ on Mohs scale * Tenacity:Brittle * Cleavage:Distinct/Good Distinct on {101}. {110} in traces. * Fracture:Conchoidal, Sub-Conchoidal [https://www.mindat.org Data from mindat.org] ===Pages mentioning pyrite=== {{Special:WhatLinksHere/Ma...")

22:0522:05, 21 July 2026 Bassett and Grylls exotic semiconductor field trip (hist | edit) [4,412 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "A morning trip to Bassett and Grylls mine in Wendron. This is a very different location to the copper mines I visited near Porthtowan on the first trip as it was a tin mine. It's actually one of the mines that apparently wasn't completely exhausted and was shut due to financial mismanagement. Now it is well overgrown but still with quite of a lot of visible infrastructure. This was trip was initiated by a discovery...")

16:4916:49, 18 July 2026 Hematite (hist | edit) [1,554 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "thumb|right|frame|Hematite from Tywarnhayle Mine, Porthtowan * Lustre:Metallic, Sub-Metallic, Dull, Earthy * Transparency:Opaque * Colour:Steel-grey to black in crystals and massively crystalline ores, dull to bright "rust-red" in earthy, compact, fine-grained material. * Streak:Reddish brown ("rust-red"); blackish when Ti-bearing * Hardness:5 - 6 on Mohs scale * Tenacity:Brittle * Cleavage:None Observed * Parting:Partings on {0001} and {1011} due...")

16:2316:23, 12 July 2026 Diode ladder filter (hist | edit) [2,265 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "right|500px The ladder filter is famous for its use in moog synthesisers. This one of course allows you to use natural semiconductors Licenced under the CERN Open Hardware Licence Version 2 – Strongly Reciprocal ===Inputs=== * Six diodes via PCB socket connector * Cutoff CV ===Controls=== * Cutoff * Resonance ===Outputs=== * Audio signal ===Schematic=== File:ladder-schematic.png ===PCB layout=== File:Ladder-pcb.png ==...")
11:3711:37, 12 July 2026 Squarewave (hist | edit) [2,930 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "right|500px This is a direct copy of one of the circuits we used on the cardboard synth, it consists of three square wave generators, all are coupled together so each one modulates the pitch of the next. In the first two the modulation is controlled by a normal transistor, the last one is modulated by a crystal. It requires two cat's whiskers and the way it is set up with the crystal connected to the input of the inverter and to ground via th...")

20:2920:29, 3 July 2026 Molybdenite (hist | edit) [1,644 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "thumb|right|frame|Molybdenite from Penlee Beach, Newlyn right|frame|A curve trace of molybdenite from Penlee Beach, Newlyn * Lustre:Metallic * Transparency:Opaque * Colour:Black, lead gray, or gray * Comment:Pale yellow to deepish reddish brown in transmitted light * Streak:Bluish gray * Hardness:1 - 1½ on Mohs scale * Tenacity:Flexible * Cleavage:Perfect Perfect on {0001} [https://www.mindat.org Data from mindat.org...")

21:4121:41, 2 July 2026 Semiconductor curve traces (hist | edit) [2,382 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "500px|right The curve trace plots you can see on this site are made with an oscilloscope and are the amount of current that a substance allows to flow through it across a range of voltages (from -2.5V to 2.5V) unless otherwise specified. Category:Todo")

12:4712:47, 1 July 2026 Pattern club gig thoughts (hist | edit) [2,392 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "Problems: * Biggest PA I've used, originally in the soundcheck we had the bass up ridiculously high which caused (really interesting) feedback by vibrating the cat's whiskers. After turning it down it was fine, even at loud volumes/close proximity to the speaker. * The quad low pass gate was perfect for keeping things in control, reducing high end without volume - really helped with the PA. * The new mixer worked a charm, having the bg noise and field recording on there...")
10:2610:26, 1 July 2026 Wolframite (hist | edit) [1,327 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "thumb|right|frame|Wolframite from Wheal Fortune, Gwennap * Lustre:Metallic * Transparency:Opaque * Colour:Black; dark brown in transmitted light * Streak:Brownish black to black * Hardness:4 - 4½ on Mohs scale * Tenacity:Brittle * Cleavage:Perfect Perfect on {010} * Parting:On {100} and {102} * Fracture:Sub-Conchoidal [https://www.mindat.org Data from mindat.org] Wolframite is a bit of an old fashioned catch all term for a group of minerals,...")
09:0209:02, 1 July 2026 Cuprite (hist | edit) [1,804 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "thumb|right|frame|Cuprite from Wheal Unity, Gwennap right|frame|A curve trace of cuprite from Wheal Unity Wood * Lustre:Adamantine, Sub-Metallic, Earthy * Transparency:Transparent, Translucent * Colour:Dark red to cochineal red, sometimes almost black. * Streak:Shining metallic brownish-red. * Hardness:3½ - 4 on Mohs scale * Tenacity:Brittle * Cleavage:Imperfect/Fair Interrupted on {111}, more rarely on {001}. * Frac...")
07:5007:50, 1 July 2026 Löllingite (hist | edit) [1,422 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "right|frame|Curve trace for Löllingite from Penlee Beach * Lustre:Metallic * Transparency:Opaque * Colour:Steel gray to silver white * Streak:Greyish black * Hardness:5 - 5½ on Mohs scale * Tenacity:Brittle * Cleavage:Distinct/Good Distinct on {010}{101} * Fracture:Sub-Conchoidal Löllingite is a quite rare form of arsenic oxide, heavier and more silver coloured than arsenopyrite which is otherwise quite similar. I found this speci...")

09:2409:24, 29 June 2026 CERN Open Hardware Licence Version 2 – Strongly Reciprocal (hist | edit) [12,260 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "Preamble CERN has developed this licence to promote collaboration among hardware designers and to provide a legal tool which supports the freedom to use, study, modify, share and distribute hardware designs and products based on those designs. Version 2 of the CERN Open Hardware Licence comes in three variants: CERN-OHL-P (permissive); and two reciprocal licences: CERN-OHL-W (weakly reciprocal) and this licence, CERN-OHL-S (strongly reciprocal). The CERN-OHL-S is copyr...")

14:3214:32, 28 June 2026 Cassiterite (hist | edit) [1,433 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "right|frame|Curve trace for Cassiterite from Wheal Unity Wood * Lustre:Adamantine, Greasy, Sub-Metallic * Transparency:Transparent, Translucent, Opaque * Colour:Black, yellow, brown, red, white, colourless. * Streak:Brownish white, white, greyish * Hardness:6 - 7 on Mohs scale * Tenacity:Brittle * Cleavage:Imperfect/Fair {100} imperfect, {110} indistinct. * Parting:More or less distinct on {111} or {011}. * Fracture:Irregular/U...")

22:5422:54, 27 June 2026 Negative resistance (hist | edit) [636 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "Negative resistance is when a device or material allows more current to flow as voltage across it is *decreased*, or vice versa, less current is passed with an *increase* in voltage. It's principle use to to create very high speed oscillators, in the microwave range. Some natural semiconductors also seem to have this capability, Cornish arsenopyrite and wolframite seem to occasionally. In a curve plot it looks like a reverse loop, it's hard to capture as it's ra...")
19:5519:55, 27 June 2026 Arsenopyrite (hist | edit) [1,431 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "right|frame|A curve trace of arsenopyrite from Penlee beach Lustre:Metallic, Sub-Metallic Transparency:Opaque Colour:Silver-white to steel-gray, may have a slight yellow appearance Comment:Tarnished material common, some iridescent Streak:Gray-black Hardness:5½ - 6 on Mohs scale Tenacity:Brittle Cleavage:Distinct/Good Distinct on {001}; {010} in traces Fracture:Irregular/Uneven [https://www.mindat.org/min-3314.html Data from mindat] A...")
19:3619:36, 27 June 2026 Chalcocite (hist | edit) [1,683 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "right|frame|A curve trace of calcocite from Penstruthal mine * Lustre:Metallic, Sub-Metallic * Transparency:Opaque * Colour:Blue black, gray, black, black gray, or steel gray * Streak:Blackish lead gray * Hardness:2½ - 3 on Mohs scale * Tenacity:Brittle * Cleavage:Poor/Indistinct Indistinct on (110) * Fracture:Conchoidal * Comment:Somewhat sectile [https://www.mindat.org/min-955.html Data from mindat.org] Chalcocite is also called...")
12:4612:46, 27 June 2026 East Wheal Towan exotic semiconductor field trip (hist | edit) [6,247 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "One of the tasks I've been funded to do is "Researching mine history and searching mine sites for semiconducting material", and for the first trip of this project I decided to head to the north coast to check out a few places: * [https://www.mindat.org/loc-216211.html East Wheal Towan] * [https://www.mindat.org/loc-216208.html Charlotte United Mine] * [https://www.mindat.org/loc-210320.html Great Wheal Charlotte] These are all within a short walk of each other near th...") originally created as "Porthtowan/Nangiles exotic semiconductor field trip"

17:2417:24, 26 June 2026 Old news (hist | edit) [3,346 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "== 10/05/2026: Release: Arsenic Labyrinth & Live at Stones Drones & Noise == Limited Edition Cassette & MP3 [https://cornish-semiconductor.bandcamp.com/album/arsenic-labyrinth release on bandcamp] 500px|right 500px|right Side A: arsenic labyrinth: arsenopyrite semiconductor square waves resonant filtered using chalcocite crystals, both fossicked from mine waste dumps at Wheal Prosper, St Hilary, Cornwall. Sequencing, modulation...")
16:3416:34, 26 June 2026 Variscan coast (hist | edit) [635 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with " The Variscan orogeny was a mountain-building event that gave rise to Cornwall, along with other mountain features across Europe. This was caused when the ancient continents of Euramerica and Gondwana collided to from the supercontinent of Pangaea. The granite that rose towards the surface under what is now Cornwall distilled many elements from deep in the earth into the existing ('country') rock in the margins around the granite. It was these areas that would very muc...")
15:5515:55, 26 June 2026 Terroir (hist | edit) [1,570 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "Pasted from [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir Wikipedia]: <blockquote>Terroir (/tɛrˈwɑːr/; French: [tɛʁwaʁ] ⓘ; from terre, lit. 'lands') is a French term used to describe the environmental factors that affect a crop's phenotype, including unique environment contexts, farming practices and a crop's specific growth habitat. Collectively, these contextual characteristics are said to have a character; terroir also refers to this character.[1] Some artisanal...")

16:5416:54, 25 June 2026 Perikon diode (hist | edit) [3,209 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "right <blockquote>At Fig. 11 we have the Perikon Detector developed by G. W. Pickard. This detector consists of two crystals--copper pyrites (Cu Fe S2) and zincite (zinc oxide ZnO), held in firm contact against each other in the manner shown. The copper pyrite crystal is mounted in a cup mounted on a spring-actuated rod provided with a suitable knob, by which it can be swung in any direction. Zincite crystals are mounted in a large cup containing...")
16:0516:05, 25 June 2026 Razor blade diode (hist | edit) [1,932 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "500px|right Rediscovering a trick from the old days - instead of using a cat's whisker, you can balance crystals on razor blades to create the point contacts. It works, you need to rotate the crystal around to find a good contact, and it's a bit easier than fiddling with a cat's whisker in some ways. I managed to get some good results in testing but it does have a couple of drawbacks. Firstly it's pretty dangerous! Seco...")

15:5915:59, 21 June 2026 Chalcopyrite (hist | edit) [1,503 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "* Lustre:Metallic * Transparency:Opaque * Colour:Brass yellow, often with an iridescent tarnish. * Streak:Greenish black * Hardness:3½ - 4 on Mohs scale * Tenacity:Brittle * Cleavage:Poor/Indistinct Indistinct on {011}, sometimes distinct. * Fracture:Irregular/Uneven [https://www.mindat.org/min-955.html Data from mindat.org] Chalcopyrite is the main ore of copper, is softer than pyrite and fairly easy to find in usable quantities. It's rarely well crystallised, but fo...")
14:5414:54, 21 June 2026 Finding your own semiconductors (hist | edit) [5,042 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "=How to find semiconductors in Cornish mine waste=")
14:3714:37, 21 June 2026 Galena (hist | edit) [1,325 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "* Lustre:Metallic, Sub-Metallic, Dull * Transparency:Opaque * Colour:Lead-grey * Streak:Lead-grey * Hardness:2½ on Mohs scale * Tenacity:Brittle * Cleavage:Perfect {001} * Parting:{111} * Fracture:Sub-Conchoidal [https://www.mindat.org/min-1641.html Data from mindat.org]] The "OG" semiconducting mineral from the early days of radio, galena was chosen as it was the best material for converting radio frequencies into audible signals, by removin...")
14:3114:31, 21 June 2026 Pyrite (hist | edit) [1,430 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "* Lustre:Metallic * Transparency:Opaque * Colour:Pale brass-yellow * Streak:Greenish-black * Hardness:6 - 6½ on Mohs scale * Tenacity:Brittle * Cleavage:Poor/Indistinct Indistinct on {001}. * Fracture:Irregular/Uneven, Conchoidal https://www.mindat.org/min-3314.html pyrite page on mindat One of the most common semiconducting minerals, pyrite exhibits high conductivity and easily provides a voltage drop - often in both polarities equally, rectification is harder to...")

07:1507:15, 20 June 2026 Historical cat's whisker designs (hist | edit) [4,729 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "right Crystal radios from the 1920s are possible to get hold of, but can be quite expensive. This is a collection of photographs and diagrams of crystal/cat's whiskers setups that I've managed to find. The materials used correspond with what was available at the time, glass, metal but also the first plastics, ebonite and bakelite - which would have felt very futuristic in these years. On the right is a diagram of a vertical set up. This...")

11:2011:20, 6 June 2026 Inspiration (hist | edit) [903 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "Inspiration, references, attribution and friends working with similar material - in no particular order: * [https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/general_el_the_unit.html 1920's crystal radio tech] * [https://www.discogs.com/artist/361941-Jessica-Rylan Jessica Rylan] * [https://permacomputing.net Permacomputing] * [https://mindat.org mindat.org] * [https://www.1010.co.uk/org/ Martin Howse] * [https://www.libitasibungu.com/about Libita Sibungu] * [https://www.ioanavrememoser.com...")

07:3507:35, 2 June 2026 Noisegen (hist | edit) [1,813 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "File:NoisegenPic.jpg:right:500px File:NoisegenSchematic.png File:NoisegenPcb.png")

07:4707:47, 1 June 2026 Cat's whisker setups (hist | edit) [2,582 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with " File:Close.jpg The original setup we used for the [http://thentrythis.org/projects/organised-atoms Organised Atoms workshops], crocodile clips mounted in blocks of balsa wood with long/coiled wire so they could be removed for larger chunks of crystal. The cat's whiskers are mounted on thicker, twisted wire so they can be positioned. All the wiring is inside the cardboard box. File:New_xtal_design.jpg This was an attempt at mounting the crystals on PCBs which...")

16:4716:47, 30 May 2026 Semiconductor history (hist | edit) [9,864 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "=The use of natural semiconductors= right|frame|500px|Tins for detector crystals for radios circa 1920 - although branded with lots of made up names, most of the crystals were in fact galena")
16:1916:19, 30 May 2026 ACE R&D project (hist | edit) [11,421 bytes] Cornish semiconductor (talk | contribs) (Created page with "Things I said I'd do (chopped up from proposal): End up with unique sounds and electronic music created with instruments I will create designed to work with natural semiconductors collected from Cornish mine waste. * The music itself will document the specific locations and history of the site the material comes from (who worked there e.g. the Bal Maidens, stories we know of the site, its industrial heritage, etc. * The instruments will be artworks in their own right...")

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