In recent years I have spent a lot more time trying to bridge the gap between my two careers. By day I’m an ocean scientist, focused on how man-made pollution events impact our global health. And by night I’m a journalist and content creator who likes to write articles for all you lovely readers. At first glance, it may seem hard to make those two topics play nicely together, but thanks to one linkage, it’s really easy.

That missing link is PFAS, a family of chemicals often referred to as “forever chemicals. PFAS is a catch-all abbreviation for a group of compounds known as Per- and polyFluoroAlkyl Substances. This is a diverse class of compounds, with some showing significant human health impacts, and others not so much. Overall though, the use and manufacturing of PFAS has been demonstrated to have several negative impacts on both human and environmental health.

But what does that have to do with guitars? PFAS and guitars are most often discussed together because of the use of PFAS in the creation of coated guitar strings. Want to know why those guitar strings last so long? Because PFAS compounds are stain and grease-resistant, creating a durable layer that reflects moisture around the string. Pretty neat, but also not worth the harm to our environment from PFAS manufacturing. If you want to read more about that, please go check out this article and this article, or read my interview here.

But there’s another link between the two worlds that I only recently put together myself. As part of my research into the various uses of PFAS, I stumbled across increased efforts from folks in academia and industry to understand the use and risks of PFAS within semiconductors. Let’s break it down further, shall we?

How and Why are PFAS in Semiconductors?

PFAS are used in semiconductors for a variety of purposes, mostly related to their ability to resist high temperatures and degradation protection against chemicals or other substances. They are likely to be used in the coatings that are applied to certain components to make them more resistant, and can also be present in a gaseous stage within components. I’ll spare you more of the science, but the key takeaway is that PFAS are widely used and important to the production of semiconductors.

Here are several articles that discuss the use and role of PFAS within semiconductors:

What Role Do Semiconductors Play in the Guitar World?

Semiconductors are pretty damn important to just about any and all electronics these days. But maybe most of you will recognize them most for their use in guitar pedals. Transistors op amps, and diodes are how we typically refer to them, but these are essentially a type of semiconductor that’s powering so many beloved guitar effects (like all your high and low gain pedals). In fact, semiconductors are so important that they represent one of the main components facing price hikes or parts shortages from ongoing tariffs.

What’s The Real Risk?

So, there are PFAS in semiconductors, and there are semiconductors in guitar pedals. Does that mean there are PFAS in your guitar pedals? Yes, it is very likely that there are PFAS compounds in your guitar pedals! Let’s frame this through pragmatic lenses, though, as opposed to causing mass hysteria. The risks of the PFAS getting out of your guitar pedals and into you is so, so minimal that, based on my understanding as a scientist, it is practically zero. The real issue is the production of PFAS and their use in manufacturing semiconductors, as this likely leads to lots of PFAS-laden waste entering the environment. Furthermore, if you take your guitar pedals and throw them out in the landfill, you could then be releasing PFAS waste into the environment as the pedals are crunched, broken, and trashed in the process.

You shouldn’t be throwing your guitar pedals out as a way to protect yourself from PFAS. That’s not what is happening. Instead, I hope this story illustrates just how deeply these forever chemicals have permeated our everyday lives. Man-made contaminants, like PFAS, are too easily found, and with thousands of PFAS compounds in existence, it will be impossible to go compound by compound and evaluate which ones are safe and which ones are harmful to human health. Ideally, there will be reforms in how these compounds are regulated and managed.

Hopefully this is another example that can provide motivation to find new alternatives to PFAS that can be used in semiconductors, coated guitar strings, or other commercial products where they don’t need to be. PFAS is a difficult and complex topic that I’ve tried to fairly and clearly communicate in this short article. As such, please ask questions and look at resources like those linked below to understand the nuance of PFAS contamination more fully.