QUANTUMBYTES on Instagram: "A CPU begins as silicon, an element extracted from sand. Silicon is refined to extreme purity and grown into a single crystal, then sliced into thin discs called wafers. Pure silicon is chosen because it can be precisely controlled to act as either an insulator or a conductor. The wafer is processed using photolithography. Light shines through patterned masks to etch microscopic circuits onto the surface. Specific regions are doped with atoms like boron or phosphorus