C2Na2
C2Na2 is an insulating carbon-sodium compound that exhibits significant structural complexity despite being thermodynamically unstable.
About C2Na2
C2Na2 is a carbon-sodium compound characterized by its wide-band-gap insulating electronic profile. It represents a complex chemical system that has been extensively investigated across multiple structural databases, reflecting significant interest in its potential atomic configurations.
Despite the large number of reported structures, the compound sits above the thermodynamic hull, suggesting it is inherently unstable under standard conditions. Its study is primarily driven by the need to understand the bonding behaviors of alkali metal carbides in high-energy or exotic chemical environments.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for C2Na2, aggregated across 5 databases.
Band GapEnergy needed to move an electron from the valence band to the conduction band. Lower or zero values tend to behave more metallic; larger gaps are more insulating or semiconducting.
Energy Above HullThermodynamic distance from the most stable set of competing phases. 0 eV/atom is on the convex hull; small positive values may still be experimentally accessible.
StabilityA plain-language summary of the best reported energy-above-hull result. It reflects whether the lowest-energy structure is on, near, or far from the stability hull.
StructuresCount of reported calculated crystal structures for this formula, including alternate polymorphs, source databases, and observed space groups.
Reported Structures
Lowest-energy structures reported for C2Na2, ranked by energy above hull.
| Space GroupSymmetry classification of the crystal arrangement. The number is the international space-group index. | Crystal SystemBroad lattice family, such as cubic, tetragonal, monoclinic, or triclinic, derived from unit-cell symmetry. | Band Gap (eV)Electronic gap calculated for this specific reported structure, measured in electronvolts. | E above hull (eV/atom)Thermodynamic distance from the convex hull for this structure, normalized per atom. Lower is generally more stable. | E/atom (eV)Computed total energy normalized per atom. Use energy above hull, not this value alone, when comparing stability. | Density (g/cm³)Mass per relaxed crystal volume, reported in grams per cubic centimeter. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I41/acd (No. 142) | tetragonal | 3.17 | 0.2315 | -6.524 | 1.60 |
| Immm (No. 71) | orthorhombic | 3.49 | 0.2316 | -6.524 | 1.61 |
| P4/nmm (No. 129) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Imma (No. 74) | — | — | — | — | — |
| R-3m (No. 166) | — | — | — | — | — |
| P4/nmm (No. 129) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Cmmm (No. 65) | — | — | — | — | — |
| P4/nmm (No. 129) | — | — | — | — | — |
| P21/m (No. 11) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Cmcm (No. 63) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Cmme (No. 67) | — | — | — | — | — |
| P21/m (No. 11) | — | — | — | — | — |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about C2Na2, answered from cross-validated data.
What is C2Na2?
C2Na2 is an insulating carbon-sodium compound that exhibits significant structural complexity despite being thermodynamically unstable.
What is the band gap of C2Na2?
Is C2Na2 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is C2Na2 thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of C2Na2?
What is the density of C2Na2?
How many polymorphs of C2Na2 are known?
What elements does C2Na2 contain?
Where does the data for C2Na2 come from?
How It Compares
As a unique binary compound of carbon and sodium, C2Na2 occupies a niche position in materials science where its insulating nature and structural diversity highlight the challenges of synthesizing stable alkali metal-carbon phases.
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).
- cod — Data from the Crystallography Open Database. Cite: Grazulis et al., Nucleic Acids Res. 40, D420 (2012).
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