CrO
Chromium(II) oxide · Chromous oxide
Chromium(II) oxide is a semiconducting transition metal oxide that is considered a promising candidate for specialized catalytic applications.

About Chromium(II) oxide
Chromium(II) oxide is a semiconducting oxide that occupies a notable position within the family of spinel-related materials. Its status as a near-hull phase suggests that it is a viable candidate for synthesis and experimental investigation, making it a subject of significant interest for researchers mapping the landscape of transition metal oxides. The material is characterized by its distinct electronic properties, which are essential for its potential role in surface-mediated chemical reactions. Given the extensive structural data available for this compound, it serves as a valuable case study for understanding the stability and behavior of chromium-based oxides in catalytic environments. Its potential utility is primarily focused on industrial and laboratory-scale catalysis where semiconducting behavior is required to facilitate specific redox pathways.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Chromium(II) oxide, 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.
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.
Cross-Source DFT Agreement
How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of CrO. 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.
Hull SpreadDifference between the highest and lowest energy-above-hull values reported by comparable sources. Smaller spread means less thermodynamic disagreement.
Sources ComparedNumber and names of computational sources with comparable entries for this formula.
Space Group ConsensusWhether independent sources predict the same crystal symmetry for the lowest-energy structure.
Reported Structures
Lowest-energy structures reported for CrO, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.0000 | -2.167 | — |
| P42/mmc (No. 131) | tetragonal | 0.00 | 0.0051 | -9.268 | 4.80 |
| Cccm (No. 66) | orthorhombic | 2.40 | 0.0058 | -9.267 | 4.51 |
| P-1 (No. 2) | triclinic | 1.54 | 0.0473 | -9.225 | 4.45 |
| C2/c (No. 15) | monoclinic | 1.58 | 0.0492 | -9.223 | 4.48 |
| C2/c (No. 15) | monoclinic | 0.00 | 0.0928 | -9.180 | 4.50 |
| Cccm (No. 66) | orthorhombic | 0.17 | 0.1016 | -9.171 | 4.44 |
| — | — | 0.76 | 0.1251 | -2.042 | — |
| P2/m (No. 10) | monoclinic | 0.00 | 0.1336 | -12.394 | 4.82 |
| — | — | 0.58 | 0.1393 | -2.028 | — |
| — | — | 0.47 | 0.1437 | -2.024 | — |
| Pm (No. 6) | monoclinic | 0.50 | 0.1590 | -9.114 | 4.60 |
Applications
Where Chromium(II) oxide is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Chromium(II) oxide, answered from cross-validated data.
What is CrO?
Chromium(II) oxide is a semiconducting transition metal oxide that is considered a promising candidate for specialized catalytic applications.
What is CrO used for?
What is the band gap of CrO?
Is CrO a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is CrO thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of CrO?
What is the density of CrO?
How many polymorphs of CrO are known?
What elements does CrO contain?
Where does the data for CrO come from?
How It Compares
Within the broad class of spinel and transition metal oxides, CrO represents a more specialized, less-studied alternative compared to widely utilized materials like NiO or ZnO. While compounds such as LaMnO3 or MgAl2O4 are frequently employed as standard benchmarks due to their robust stability and well-documented performance, CrO offers a unique electronic profile that may provide distinct advantages in niche catalytic applications where standard oxides fall short.
Data sources & attribution
- 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)
- 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)
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