CrI3

Chromium triiodide · Chromium(III) iodide

Chromium triiodide is a stable, semiconducting chromium halide widely studied for its unique magnetic properties in thin-film and layered forms.

CrI
Crystal structure of CrI3 (trigonal, P3112 (No. 151))
Ground-state structure · Materials Project
Overview

About Chromium triiodide

Chromium triiodide is a thermodynamically stable inorganic compound that exists as a semiconducting material. Its structural characteristics have made it a subject of extensive investigation, particularly within the context of two-dimensional magnetism and layered van der Waals crystals.

Because it sits on the convex hull, this compound exhibits robust stability, which is essential for its role in experimental condensed matter physics. It is primarily utilized as a platform for studying fundamental electronic and magnetic phenomena in thin-film configurations.

At a glance

Key Properties

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

Band Gap

0.62–1.35 eV
Range across DFT structures · ground state: narrow gap

Energy Above Hull

0.000 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources

Stability

Stable
3 DFT sources

Structures

35
4 databases, 9 space groups
Validation

Cross-Source DFT Agreement

How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of CrI3. Tight agreement means computed properties can be trusted without re-running calculations.

Agreement Score

0.30 / 1.00
Trust tier: low

Hull Spread

0.176 eV
EAH spread across sources

Sources Compared

3
jarvis, materials_project, oqmd

Space Group Consensus

Mixed (most: P3112 (No. 151))
Crystallography

Reported Structures

Lowest-energy structures reported for CrI3, ranked by energy above hull.

Space GroupCrystal SystemBand Gap (eV)E above hull (eV/atom)E/atom (eV)Density (g/cm³)
P3112 (No. 151)trigonal1.350.0000-4.2794.94
——1.200.0000-0.557—
——1.170.0023-0.554—
——1.130.0038-0.553—
——1.120.0039-0.553—
——1.120.0042-0.552—
——1.110.0202-0.536—
——0.000.1128-0.444—
Cmmm (No. 65)orthorhombic0.000.1761-0.031—
——0.620.2009-0.356—
——0.000.2899-0.267—
——0.000.78080.224—
Uses

Applications

Where Chromium triiodide is used.

Spintronics researchMagnetic thin-film developmentCondensed matter physics experimentsVan der Waals heterostructure studies
Reference

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Chromium triiodide, answered from cross-validated data.

What is CrI3?

Chromium triiodide is a stable, semiconducting chromium halide widely studied for its unique magnetic properties in thin-film and layered forms.

More questions
What is CrI3 used for?
Chromium triiodide (CrI3) is used in spintronics research, magnetic thin-film development, condensed matter physics experiments, and van der Waals heterostructure studies.
What is the band gap of CrI3?
Chromium triiodide (CrI3) has a DFT-computed band gap of 0.62–1.35 eV across 35 reported structures. Standard DFT underestimates band gaps, so the measured gap is typically larger.
Is CrI3 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
DFT predicts a band gap of up to 1.35 eV (a semiconductor). Measured gaps are typically larger.
Is CrI3 thermodynamically stable?
Yes — Chromium triiodide (CrI3) sits on the convex hull (energy above hull 0 eV/atom), i.e. stable.
What is the crystal structure of CrI3?
The reference structure of Chromium triiodide (CrI3) is trigonal symmetry, space group P3112 (No. 151).
What is the density of CrI3?
The computed density of the ground-state structure of Chromium triiodide (CrI3) is 4.94 g/cm³.
How many polymorphs of CrI3 are known?
35 structures of CrI3 are reported across 4 databases, spanning 9 distinct space groups.
What elements does CrI3 contain?
Chromium triiodide (CrI3) contains Cr and I (2 elements).
Where does the data for CrI3 come from?
CrI3 data is cross-referenced from materials_project, oqmd, jarvis, mpaloe.
Comparison

How It Compares

As a prominent layered halide, Chromium triiodide serves as a foundational reference point for the study of intrinsic magnetism in low-dimensional systems, setting the standard for how semiconducting halides can be manipulated to exhibit long-range magnetic order.

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)
  • 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)
  • jarvis — Data from JARVIS (jarvis.nist.gov), NIST. Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020). (LicenseRef-US-Gov-PD)
  • mpaloe — Data from MP-ALOE. Cite: Kuner et al., npj Comput. Mater. (2025), doi:10.1038/s41524-025-01834-9.

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