> This heating step is done with an argon quartz tube in which a stack of two SiC chips are placed in a graphite crucible, according to de Heer. Then a high-fre

> This heating step is done with an argon quartz tube in which a stack of two SiC chips are placed in a graphite crucible, according to de Heer. Then a high-frequency current is run through a copper coil around the quartz tube, which heats the graphite crucible through induction. So they use a tube furnace? > “The chips we use cost about [US] $10, the crucible about $1, and the quartz tube about $10,” said de Heer. Tube furnaces do not cost $10 except when you build it yourself and do not count the thousands of dollars of equipment you have sitting around.