AgNO2

Silver nitrite · Silver(I) nitrite

Silver nitrite is a metastable, semiconducting inorganic salt widely used as a reagent for chemical synthesis.

AgNO
Crystal structure of AgNO2 (orthorhombic, Imm2 (No. 44))
Ground-state structure · Materials Project
Overview

About Silver nitrite

Silver nitrite is a semiconducting inorganic compound that exists in a metastable state. Its chemical behavior is defined by its sensitivity to light and its role as a source of the nitrite ion in various chemical transformations.

Because of its unique reactivity, this compound is frequently employed in laboratory settings for specific organic synthesis pathways. Its structural diversity is highlighted by the multiple reported configurations documented across chemical databases, reflecting its complex coordination chemistry.

At a glance

Key Properties

Cross-validated computational properties for Silver nitrite, aggregated across 5 databases.

Band Gap

0.34–1.79 eV
Range across DFT structures · ground state: narrow gap

Energy Above Hull

0.062 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources

Stability

Metastable
3 DFT sources

Structures

15
5 databases, 3 space groups
Validation

Cross-Source DFT Agreement

How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of AgNO2. Tight agreement means computed properties can be trusted without re-running calculations.

Agreement Score

0.93 / 1.00
Trust tier: high

Hull Spread

0.016 eV
EAH spread across sources

Sources Compared

3
jarvis, materials_project, oqmd

Space Group Consensus

Mixed (most: Imm2 (No. 44))
Crystallography

Reported Structures

Lowest-energy structures reported for AgNO2, ranked by energy above hull.

Space GroupCrystal SystemBand Gap (eV)E above hull (eV/atom)E/atom (eV)Density (g/cm³)
——1.450.0617-0.391—
C2 (No. 5)monoclinic1.440.0694-5.7673.95
Imm2 (No. 44)orthorhombic1.790.0764-5.7604.04
Imm2 (No. 44)orthorhombic1.190.0781-0.163—
Imm2 (No. 44)orthorhombic1.200.0804-0.161—
C2 (No. 5)monoclinic1.190.0807-0.161—
P4mm (No. 99)tetragonal0.340.63400.392—
C2 (No. 5)monoclinic———3.95
C2 (No. 5)monoclinic———4.14
C2 (No. 5)monoclinic———3.99
Imm2 (No. 44)orthorhombic———4.04
Imm2 (No. 44)orthorhombic———4.24
Uses

Applications

Where Silver nitrite is used.

Organic synthesisLaboratory reagentPreparation of nitro compoundsPreparation of nitrite esters
Reference

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Silver nitrite, answered from cross-validated data.

What is AgNO2?

Silver nitrite is a metastable, semiconducting inorganic salt widely used as a reagent for chemical synthesis.

More questions
What is AgNO2 used for?
Silver nitrite (AgNO2) is used in organic synthesis, laboratory reagent, preparation of nitro compounds, and preparation of nitrite esters.
What is the band gap of AgNO2?
Silver nitrite (AgNO2) has a DFT-computed band gap of 0.34–1.79 eV across 15 reported structures. Standard DFT underestimates band gaps, so the measured gap is typically larger.
Is AgNO2 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
DFT predicts a band gap of up to 1.79 eV (a semiconductor). Measured gaps are typically larger.
Is AgNO2 thermodynamically stable?
Silver nitrite (AgNO2) has a lowest energy above hull of 0.062 eV/atom (metastable).
What is the crystal structure of AgNO2?
The reference structure of Silver nitrite (AgNO2) is orthorhombic symmetry, space group Imm2 (No. 44).
What is the density of AgNO2?
The computed density of the ground-state structure of Silver nitrite (AgNO2) is 4.04 g/cm³.
How many polymorphs of AgNO2 are known?
15 structures of AgNO2 are reported across 5 databases, spanning 3 distinct space groups.
What elements does AgNO2 contain?
Silver nitrite (AgNO2) contains Ag, N, and O (3 elements).
Where does the data for AgNO2 come from?
AgNO2 data is cross-referenced from oqmd, materials_project, jarvis, mpaloe, cod.
Comparison

How It Compares

As a distinct inorganic compound, silver nitrite serves as a critical reagent in synthetic chemistry, functioning as a specialized tool for introducing nitrogen-containing groups into organic molecules where other nitrite salts might be less effective or reactive.

Data sources & attribution
  • oqmd — Data from the OQMD (oqmd.org). Cite: Saal et al., JOM 65, 1501 (2013); Kirklin et al., npj Comp. Mater. 1, 15010 (2015). (CC-BY-4.0)
  • materials_project — Data from the Materials Project (materialsproject.org). Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013). (CC-BY-4.0)
  • jarvis — Data from JARVIS (jarvis.nist.gov), NIST. Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020). (LicenseRef-US-Gov-PD)
  • mpaloe — Data from MP-ALOE. Cite: Kuner et al., npj Comput. Mater. (2025), doi:10.1038/s41524-025-01834-9.
  • cod — Data from the Crystallography Open Database (crystallography.net/cod/). Cite: Grazulis et al., J. Appl. Cryst. 42, 726 (2009). (CC0-1.0)

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