Ca2Mg2Zn4

Ca2Mg2Zn4 is a semimetallic ternary intermetallic compound that exhibits high structural complexity and thermodynamic metastability.

CaMgZn
Crystal structure of Ca2Mg2Zn4 (orthorhombic, Immm (No. 71))
Ground-state structure · Materials Project
Overview

About Ca2Mg2Zn4

Ca2Mg2Zn4 is a multicomponent intermetallic compound composed of calcium, magnesium, and zinc. Its electronic structure exhibits semimetallic behavior, placing it in a unique regime where metallic and semiconducting properties converge. The material is notable for its significant structural complexity, as evidenced by the large number of reported configurations across various databases. Because it resides above the thermodynamic hull, it is considered a metastable phase that requires specific synthesis conditions to stabilize.

At a glance

Key Properties

Cross-validated computational properties for Ca2Mg2Zn4, aggregated across 3 databases.

Band Gap

0.08 eV
Range across DFT structures

Energy Above Hull

1.447 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources

Stability

Above hull
2 DFT sources

Structures

40
3 databases, 7 space groups
Crystallography

Reported Structures

Lowest-energy structures reported for Ca2Mg2Zn4, ranked by energy above hull.

Space GroupCrystal SystemBand Gap (eV)E above hull (eV/atom)E/atom (eV)Density (g/cm³)
Immm (No. 71)orthorhombic0.081.4474-0.3190.23
I4/mmm (No. 139)
Cmcm (No. 63)
Cmcm (No. 63)
P63/mmc (No. 194)
Cmcm (No. 63)
I4/mmm (No. 139)
P63/mmc (No. 194)
Pmmn (No. 59)
P4/nmm (No. 129)
Cmcm (No. 63)
P4/nmm (No. 129)
Uses

Applications

Where Ca2Mg2Zn4 is used.

Fundamental materials researchAlloy design studiesSolid-state chemistry exploration
Reference

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Ca2Mg2Zn4, answered from cross-validated data.

What is Ca2Mg2Zn4?

Ca2Mg2Zn4 is a semimetallic ternary intermetallic compound that exhibits high structural complexity and thermodynamic metastability.

More questions
What is Ca2Mg2Zn4 used for?
Ca2Mg2Zn4 is used in fundamental materials research, alloy design studies, and solid-state chemistry exploration.
What is the band gap of Ca2Mg2Zn4?
Ca2Mg2Zn4 has a DFT-computed band gap of 0.08 eV across 40 reported structures.
Is Ca2Mg2Zn4 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
With a near-zero band gap it behaves as a (semi)metal.
Is Ca2Mg2Zn4 thermodynamically stable?
Ca2Mg2Zn4 has a lowest energy above hull of 1.447 eV/atom (above hull).
What is the crystal structure of Ca2Mg2Zn4?
The lowest-energy reported polymorph of Ca2Mg2Zn4 is orthorhombic symmetry, space group Immm (No. 71).
What is the density of Ca2Mg2Zn4?
The computed density of the ground-state structure of Ca2Mg2Zn4 is 0.23 g/cm³.
How many polymorphs of Ca2Mg2Zn4 are known?
40 structures of Ca2Mg2Zn4 are reported across 3 databases, spanning 7 distinct space groups.
What elements does Ca2Mg2Zn4 contain?
Ca2Mg2Zn4 contains Ca, Mg, and Zn (3 elements).
Where does the data for Ca2Mg2Zn4 come from?
Ca2Mg2Zn4 data is cross-referenced from materials_project, aflow, omat24.
Comparison

How It Compares

As a member of the ternary calcium-magnesium-zinc system, this compound represents a specialized structural arrangement within a broader class of complex intermetallic phases. Unlike more stable, stoichiometric alloys, its position above the thermodynamic hull suggests it is a kinetically trapped or high-pressure phase that offers researchers a unique window into the structural diversity of zinc-rich ternary systems.

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).
  • omat24 — Data from OMat24 (Meta FAIR). Cite: Barroso-Luque et al., arXiv 2410.12771 (2024).

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