CaN
Calcium nitride is a chemical compound composed of calcium and nitrogen. It is primarily utilized as a chemical reagent in specialized synthesis processes and as a source of nitrogen in various laboratory applications.
CaN
Overview
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for CaN, aggregated across 4 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.
Metallic / not reported
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.
0.398 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources
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.
Above hull
2 DFT sources
StructuresCount of reported calculated crystal structures for this formula, including alternate polymorphs, source databases, and observed space groups.
245
4 databases, 34 space groups
Validation
Cross-Source DFT Agreement
How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of CaN. Tight agreement means computed properties can be trusted without re-running calculations.
Agreement ScoreA normalized confidence score summarizing how closely independent DFT databases agree. Higher scores mean tighter cross-source agreement.
1.00 / 1.00
Trust tier: medium
Hull SpreadDifference between the highest and lowest energy-above-hull values reported by comparable sources. Smaller spread means less thermodynamic disagreement.
0.000 eV
EAH spread across sources
Sources ComparedNumber and names of computational sources with comparable entries for this formula.
2
jarvis, materials_project
Space Group ConsensusWhether independent sources predict the same crystal symmetry for the lowest-energy structure.
All match
Crystallography
Reported Structures
Lowest-energy structures reported for CaN, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 0.00 | 0.3982 | -8.525 | 2.85 |
| Amm2 (No. 38) | Orthorhombic | — | — | — | 1.92 |
| P2/m (No. 10) | Monoclinic | — | — | — | 2.95 |
| P2/m (No. 10) | Monoclinic | — | — | — | 3.24 |
| P-1 (No. 2) | Triclinic | — | — | — | 2.38 |
| P-1 (No. 2) | Triclinic | — | — | — | 2.71 |
| P-1 (No. 2) | Triclinic | — | — | — | 2.79 |
| Fmm2 (No. 42) | Orthorhombic | — | — | — | 1.47 |
| Fmm2 (No. 42) | Orthorhombic | — | — | — | 1.94 |
| Fmm2 (No. 42) | Orthorhombic | — | — | — | 2.20 |
| P21/c (No. 14) | Monoclinic | — | — | — | 1.79 |
| P2/m (No. 10) | Monoclinic | — | — | — | 2.12 |
Uses
Applications
Where CaN is used.
Chemical synthesisLaboratory reagent
Reference
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about CaN, answered from cross-validated data.
What is CaN?
Calcium nitride is a chemical compound composed of calcium and nitrogen. It is primarily utilized as a chemical reagent in specialized synthesis processes and as a source of nitrogen in various laboratory applications.
More questions
What is CaN used for?
CaN is used in chemical synthesis and laboratory reagent.
What is the band gap of CaN?
CaN is computed to be metallic (no band gap) in the reported DFT structures.
Is CaN a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Computed band structures report no gap, so it is metallic.
Is CaN thermodynamically stable?
CaN has a lowest energy above hull of 0.398 eV/atom (above hull).
What is the crystal structure of CaN?
The lowest-energy reported polymorph of CaN is cubic symmetry, space group Fm-3m (No. 225).
What is the density of CaN?
The computed density of the ground-state structure of CaN is 2.85 g/cm³.
How many polymorphs of CaN are known?
245 structures of CaN are reported across 4 databases, spanning 34 distinct space groups.
What elements does CaN contain?
CaN contains Ca and N (2 elements).
Where does the data for CaN come from?
CaN data is cross-referenced from materials_project, mpaloe, jarvis.
Data sources & attribution
- materials_project — Data from the Materials Project. Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013).
- mpaloe — Data from mpaloe.
- jarvis — Data from JARVIS (NIST). Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020).
Analyze CaN in the Lattice Graph platform
Polymorph comparison, confidence scoring, supply-chain risk, and patent monitoring — across 53 integrated data sources.
Explore the Platform →