A systematic investigation of the diffusion of Be, B, Na, Mg, Cl, K, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Zn, Ge, Rb, and Mo in silicon has been carried out. The elements were implanted into silicon wafers as low dose impurities, and then postheat treatments of the ion-implanted samples were conducted at different temperatures for a specific time. Following the anneals, the depth profiles were obtained by secondary ion mass spectrometry analyses. A wide range of diffusion behavior has been observed for these elements. Based on differences in the depth profiles the diffusion mechanism was identified where possible.