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Luke James is a freelance writer and journalist.\u00a0 Although his background is in legal, he has a personal interest in all things tech, especially hardware and microelectronics, and anything regulatory.\u00a0 ","collapsible":{"enabled":true,"maxHeight":250,"readMoreText":"Read more","readLessText":"Read less"}}), "https://slice.vanilla.futurecdn.net/13-4-18/js/authorBio.js"); } else { console.error('%c FTE ','background: #9306F9; color: #ffffff','no lazy slice hydration function available'); } Luke James Social Links Navigation Contributor Luke James is a freelance writer and journalist. Although his background is in legal, he has a personal interest in all things tech, especially hardware and microelectronics, and anything regulatory.
Shiznizzle This is no joke. This helium issue. I remember last year reading about the helium shortages and issues surround its acquisition. The article was just some random BBC written one page new filler that most paid no attention to. They also mentioned that some users were just squandering what we had. Now we are really in trouble. Not only is NAND at crazy levels in terms of price but it could be that within a month no NAND chips will be make in south korea. Relying on outside sources to supply nearly %70 of your needs……has its cost. https://www.bbc.co.uk/future/article/20250331-why-helium-shortages-are-worrying-the-world Reply
bit_user Shiznizzle said: This is no joke. This helium issue. Yeah, we need to get some fusion reactors online, quick! : D Reply
Notton Since it's not touched upon in the article, from what I could find… Helium is used to purge other gases in the fabrication chamber. Apparently, SK Hynix doesn't have a Helium recovery system, otherwise they could reuse it indefinitely. Reply
teletaggi Notton said: Since it's not touched upon in the article, from what I could find… Helium is used to purge other gases in the fabrication chamber. Apparently, SK Hynix doesn't have a Helium recovery system, otherwise they could reuse it indefinitely. Recovery is, of course, never 100% and very costly. While increasingly needed, evacuating the rooms/chambers, cooling the potentially mixed air down/compressing it to extract helium etc… Chips are already expensive and helium prices for mined helium haven't been high enough so far to restructure whole plants Reply
teletaggi bit_user said: Yeah, we need to get some fusion reactors online, quick! : D While I agree with the notion, I wouldn't be surprised if a single plant would need more fusion helium than the whole world could supply 😀 Reply
80251 Nuclear fusion of H isn't used to make He is it? The good news just never stops…. It does make me feel better about buying an overpriced Samsung 9100 Pro 4TB though. Reply
bit_user 80251 said: Nuclear fusion of H isn't used to make He is it? Yes, though it's apparently not quite that simple. Experimental reactors use deuterium and tritium, heavier isotopes of hydrogen, in a process known as DT fusion. This reaction forms a helium nucleus and an energetic neutron. … Since hydrogen has a single proton in its nucleus, it requires the least effort to attain fusion, and yields the most net energy output. Also, since it has one electron, hydrogen is the easiest fuel to fully ionize. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fusion_power Reply
Samlebon2306 I think Algeria has the third largest Helium reserves. Reply
Key considerations
- Investor positioning can change fast
- Volatility remains possible near catalysts
- Macro rates and liquidity can dominate flows
Reference reading
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/SPONSORED_LINK_URL
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/qatar-helium-shutdown-puts-chip-supply-chain-on-a-two-week-clock#main
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Informational only. No financial advice. Do your own research.