CsN3

Cesium azide · Caesium azide

Cesium azide is a thermodynamically stable, insulating salt containing the azide anion, primarily used in chemical research and synthesis.

CsN
Crystal structure of CsN3 (tetragonal, I4/mcm (No. 140))
Ground-state structure · Materials Project
Overview

About Cesium azide

Cesium azide is a stable inorganic compound composed of cesium and nitrogen. As a wide-gap insulator, it exhibits distinct electronic characteristics that differentiate it from metallic or semiconducting materials. Its position on the convex hull confirms its thermodynamic stability, making it a reliable subject for structural research.

This compound is frequently utilized in specialized chemical synthesis and laboratory settings. Due to its well-documented structural profile across numerous reported configurations, it serves as a foundational material for understanding azide chemistry and the behavior of alkali metal nitrogen compounds.

At a glance

Key Properties

Cross-validated computational properties for Cesium azide, aggregated across 2 databases.

Band Gap

3.79–4.24 eV
Range across DFT structures

Energy Above Hull

0.000 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources

Stability

On hull (stable)
1 DFT source

Structures

14
2 databases, 5 space groups
Crystallography

Reported Structures

Lowest-energy structures reported for CsN3, ranked by energy above hull.

Space GroupCrystal SystemBand Gap (eV)E above hull (eV/atom)E/atom (eV)Density (g/cm³)
I4/mcm (No. 140)tetragonal4.240.0000-13.3413.33
P4/mmm (No. 123)tetragonal3.790.0113-13.3293.01
P4/mmm (No. 123)Tetragonal3.01
P4/mmm (No. 123)Tetragonal3.11
Pm (No. 6)Monoclinic1.71
Pm (No. 6)Monoclinic1.77
Pm (No. 6)Monoclinic1.79
Cm (No. 8)Monoclinic2.06
P4/mmm (No. 123)Tetragonal3.02
I4/mcm (No. 140)Tetragonal3.18
I4/mcm (No. 140)Tetragonal3.28
I4/mcm (No. 140)Tetragonal3.19
Uses

Applications

Where Cesium azide is used.

Chemical synthesisLaboratory reagentEnergetic materials research
Reference

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Cesium azide, answered from cross-validated data.

What is CsN3?

Cesium azide is a thermodynamically stable, insulating salt containing the azide anion, primarily used in chemical research and synthesis.

More questions
What is CsN3 used for?
Cesium azide (CsN3) is used in chemical synthesis, laboratory reagent, and energetic materials research.
What is the band gap of CsN3?
Cesium azide (CsN3) has a DFT-computed band gap of 3.79–4.24 eV across 14 reported structures.
Is CsN3 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
With a wide band gap up to 4.24 eV it is an insulator / wide-band-gap material.
Is CsN3 thermodynamically stable?
Yes — Cesium azide (CsN3) sits on the convex hull (energy above hull 0 eV/atom), i.e. on hull (stable).
What is the crystal structure of CsN3?
The lowest-energy reported polymorph of Cesium azide (CsN3) is tetragonal symmetry, space group I4/mcm (No. 140).
What is the density of CsN3?
The computed density of the ground-state structure of Cesium azide (CsN3) is 3.33 g/cm³.
How many polymorphs of CsN3 are known?
14 structures of CsN3 are reported across 2 databases, spanning 5 distinct space groups.
What elements does CsN3 contain?
Cesium azide (CsN3) contains Cs and N (2 elements).
Where does the data for CsN3 come from?
CsN3 data is cross-referenced from materials_project, mpaloe.
Comparison

How It Compares

As a standalone representative of its chemical class in this context, cesium azide serves as a primary example of a stable, insulating alkali metal azide. It provides a baseline for evaluating the structural diversity and bonding characteristics inherent to nitrogen-rich ionic lattices.

Data sources & attribution
  • materials_project — Data from the Materials Project. Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013).
  • mpaloe — Data from mpaloe.

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