BrN3

Bromine azide is a semiconducting, high-energy nitrogen-based compound known for its structural complexity and inherent thermodynamic instability.

BrN
Crystal structure of BrN3 (tetragonal, I41cd (No. 110))
Ground-state structure · Materials Project
Overview

About BrN3

Bromine azide is a nitrogen-rich compound characterized by its semiconducting electronic nature. Due to its chemical composition, it is considered a high-energy material that exhibits thermodynamic instability relative to its elemental constituents.

Despite its tendency to sit above the stability hull, the compound is a subject of significant interest in structural chemistry. Its complex bonding environment has led to a high volume of reported structures across various databases, highlighting its role as a unique subject for experimental and computational investigation.

At a glance

Key Properties

Cross-validated computational properties for BrN3, aggregated across 4 databases.

Band Gap

1.55–2.01 eV
Range across DFT structures · ground state: wide gap

Energy Above Hull

0.490 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources

Stability

Unstable
3 DFT sources

Structures

108
4 databases, 23 space groups
Validation

Cross-Source DFT Agreement

How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of BrN3. Tight agreement means computed properties can be trusted without re-running calculations.

Agreement Score

0.00 / 1.00
Trust tier: low

Hull Spread

1.080 eV
EAH spread across sources

Sources Compared

3
jarvis, materials_project, oqmd

Space Group Consensus

—
Crystallography

Reported Structures

Lowest-energy structures reported for BrN3, ranked by energy above hull.

Space GroupCrystal SystemBand Gap (eV)E above hull (eV/atom)E/atom (eV)Density (g/cm³)
I41cd (No. 110)tetragonal2.010.4902-6.1732.00
P1 (No. 1)triclinic1.550.85010.838—
——0.001.56971.570—
——0.002.99762.998—
——0.003.40653.407—
——0.003.62343.623—
C2 (No. 5)monoclinic———5.70
Cm (No. 8)monoclinic———2.89
P1 (No. 1)triclinic———2.98
P1 (No. 1)triclinic———3.89
P1 (No. 1)triclinic———4.19
P1 (No. 1)triclinic———4.22
Uses

Applications

Where BrN3 is used.

Chemical synthesisHigh-energy material researchStructural chemistry studies
Reference

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about BrN3, answered from cross-validated data.

What is BrN3?

Bromine azide is a semiconducting, high-energy nitrogen-based compound known for its structural complexity and inherent thermodynamic instability.

More questions
What is BrN3 used for?
BrN3 is used in chemical synthesis, high-energy material research, and structural chemistry studies.
What is the band gap of BrN3?
BrN3 has a DFT-computed band gap of 1.55–2.01 eV across 108 reported structures. Standard DFT underestimates band gaps, so the measured gap is typically larger.
Is BrN3 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
DFT predicts a band gap of up to 2.01 eV (a semiconductor). Measured gaps are typically larger.
Is BrN3 thermodynamically stable?
BrN3 has a lowest energy above hull of 0.490 eV/atom (unstable).
What is the crystal structure of BrN3?
The reference structure of BrN3 is tetragonal symmetry, space group I41cd (No. 110).
What is the density of BrN3?
The computed density of the ground-state structure of BrN3 is 2.00 g/cm³.
How many polymorphs of BrN3 are known?
108 structures of BrN3 are reported across 4 databases, spanning 23 distinct space groups.
What elements does BrN3 contain?
BrN3 contains Br and N (2 elements).
Where does the data for BrN3 come from?
BrN3 data is cross-referenced from materials_project, jarvis, oqmd, mpaloe.
Comparison

How It Compares

As a specialized nitrogen-rich species, bromine azide occupies a distinct niche in inorganic chemistry. Unlike more conventional, thermodynamically stable compounds, its structural diversity and energetic profile make it a standout example of a metastable material that challenges standard synthesis and characterization techniques.

Data sources & attribution
  • 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)
  • 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)
  • mpaloe — Data from MP-ALOE. Cite: Kuner et al., npj Comput. Mater. (2025), doi:10.1038/s41524-025-01834-9.

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