Au2Fe2

Au2Fe2 is a metallic gold-iron compound that is thermodynamically unstable but frequently represented in structural databases.

AuFe
Crystal structure of Au2Fe2 (trigonal, R-3m (No. 166))
Ground-state structure · Materials Project
Overview

About Au2Fe2

Au2Fe2 is a metallic compound composed of gold and iron. Its electronic structure exhibits metallic character, consistent with the behavior of its constituent transition and noble metals. As a material that sits above the thermodynamic hull, it is considered metastable or unstable under standard conditions. Despite this, it remains a notable subject of investigation in structural chemistry, with numerous reported configurations across various databases. Its significance lies in the fundamental study of gold-iron interactions and the complexity of their phase space. Researchers analyze such compounds to understand the limits of alloy formation and the structural diversity possible within binary metallic systems.

At a glance

Key Properties

Cross-validated computational properties for Au2Fe2, aggregated across 5 databases.

Band Gap

Metallic / not reported

Energy Above Hull

0.251 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources

Stability

Above hull
3 DFT sources

Structures

33
5 databases, 15 space groups
Crystallography

Reported Structures

Lowest-energy structures reported for Au2Fe2, ranked by energy above hull.

Space GroupCrystal SystemBand Gap (eV)E above hull (eV/atom)E/atom (eV)Density (g/cm³)
R-3m (No. 166)trigonal0.000.2506-5.62113.60
C2/m (No. 12)
P4/mmm (No. 123)
Pmmn (No. 59)
Cmcm (No. 63)
Cmcm (No. 63)
P4/nmm (No. 129)
R-3m (No. 166)
Cmcm (No. 63)
I41/amd (No. 141)
Cmme (No. 67)
P4/nmm (No. 129)
Uses

Applications

Where Au2Fe2 is used.

Fundamental materials researchStructural phase studies
Reference

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Au2Fe2, answered from cross-validated data.

What is Au2Fe2?

Au2Fe2 is a metallic gold-iron compound that is thermodynamically unstable but frequently represented in structural databases.

More questions
What is Au2Fe2 used for?
Au2Fe2 is used in fundamental materials research and structural phase studies.
What is the band gap of Au2Fe2?
Au2Fe2 is computed to be metallic (no band gap) in the reported DFT structures.
Is Au2Fe2 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Computed band structures report no gap, so it is metallic.
Is Au2Fe2 thermodynamically stable?
Au2Fe2 has a lowest energy above hull of 0.251 eV/atom (above hull).
What is the crystal structure of Au2Fe2?
The lowest-energy reported polymorph of Au2Fe2 is trigonal symmetry, space group R-3m (No. 166).
What is the density of Au2Fe2?
The computed density of the ground-state structure of Au2Fe2 is 13.60 g/cm³.
How many polymorphs of Au2Fe2 are known?
33 structures of Au2Fe2 are reported across 5 databases, spanning 15 distinct space groups.
What elements does Au2Fe2 contain?
Au2Fe2 contains Au and Fe (2 elements).
Where does the data for Au2Fe2 come from?
Au2Fe2 data is cross-referenced from materials_project, aflow, nomad, omat24, cod.
Comparison

How It Compares

As a binary metallic system, Au2Fe2 represents a complex structural challenge within the broader landscape of gold-iron alloys. While many gold-iron combinations are studied for their magnetic or catalytic properties, this specific stoichiometry is distinguished by its high structural variability, appearing in numerous distinct configurations across computational databases.

Data sources & attribution
  • materials_project — Data from the Materials Project. Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013).
  • aflow — Data from AFLOW. Cite: Curtarolo et al., Comp. Mater. Sci. 58, 218 (2012).
  • nomad — Data from NOMAD. Cite: Draxl & Scheffler, J. Phys. Mater. 2, 036001 (2019).
  • omat24 — Data from OMat24 (Meta FAIR). Cite: Barroso-Luque et al., arXiv 2410.12771 (2024).
  • cod — Data from the Crystallography Open Database. Cite: Grazulis et al., Nucleic Acids Res. 40, D420 (2012).

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