Cu2SiS3

Cu2SiS3 is a semiconducting copper silicon sulfide that shows significant potential for use in emerging electronic and energy-harvesting technologies.

CuSSi
Crystal structure of Cu2SiS3 (trigonal, P31m (No. 157))
Ground-state structure · Materials Project
Overview

About Cu2SiS3

Cu2SiS3 is a ternary sulfide semiconductor composed of copper, silicon, and sulfur. Its electronic properties and structural versatility make it an intriguing subject for materials science research, particularly in the development of sustainable thin-film technologies.

As a near-hull stable compound, it is considered highly likely to be synthesizable in laboratory settings. The significant number of reported structures across multiple databases highlights its importance as an emerging material with potential for tunable electronic behavior.

At a glance

Key Properties

Cross-validated computational properties for Cu2SiS3, aggregated across 3 databases.

Band Gap

0.38–1.46 eV
Range across DFT structures · ground state: narrow gap

Energy Above Hull

0.009 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources

Stability

Near Hull
3 DFT sources

Structures

22
3 databases, 4 space groups
Validation

Cross-Source DFT Agreement

How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of Cu2SiS3. Tight agreement means computed properties can be trusted without re-running calculations.

Agreement Score

0.98 / 1.00
Trust tier: high

Hull Spread

0.006 eV
EAH spread across sources

Sources Compared

3
jarvis, materials_project, oqmd

Space Group Consensus

Mixed (most: P31m (No. 157))
Crystallography

Reported Structures

Lowest-energy structures reported for Cu2SiS3, ranked by energy above hull.

Space GroupCrystal SystemBand Gap (eV)E above hull (eV/atom)E/atom (eV)Density (g/cm³)
——1.300.0087-0.590—
Cc (No. 9)monoclinic1.120.0095-9.6263.91
——1.390.0107-0.588—
Cmc21 (No. 36)orthorhombic1.200.0110-9.6243.89
Fdd2 (No. 43)orthorhombic0.940.0144-0.491—
Fdd2 (No. 43)orthorhombic0.860.0146-9.6203.92
——0.380.0186-0.580—
Cc (No. 9)monoclinic0.640.0260-9.6093.86
——1.460.0779-0.521—
P31m (No. 157)trigonal0.000.1284-0.377—
P31m (No. 157)trigonal0.000.1348-9.5003.87
——0.000.1352-0.464—
Uses

Applications

Where Cu2SiS3 is used.

PhotovoltaicsOptoelectronicsThin-film solar cells
Reference

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Cu2SiS3, answered from cross-validated data.

What is Cu2SiS3?

Cu2SiS3 is a semiconducting copper silicon sulfide that shows significant potential for use in emerging electronic and energy-harvesting technologies.

More questions
What is Cu2SiS3 used for?
Cu2SiS3 is used in photovoltaics, optoelectronics, and thin-film solar cells.
What is the band gap of Cu2SiS3?
Cu2SiS3 has a DFT-computed band gap of 0.38–1.46 eV across 22 reported structures. Standard DFT underestimates band gaps, so the measured gap is typically larger.
Is Cu2SiS3 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
DFT predicts a band gap of up to 1.46 eV (a semiconductor). Measured gaps are typically larger.
Is Cu2SiS3 thermodynamically stable?
Cu2SiS3 has a lowest energy above hull of 0.009 eV/atom (near hull).
What is the crystal structure of Cu2SiS3?
The reference structure of Cu2SiS3 is trigonal symmetry, space group P31m (No. 157).
How many polymorphs of Cu2SiS3 are known?
22 structures of Cu2SiS3 are reported across 3 databases, spanning 4 distinct space groups.
What elements does Cu2SiS3 contain?
Cu2SiS3 contains Cu, S, and Si (3 elements).
Where does the data for Cu2SiS3 come from?
Cu2SiS3 data is cross-referenced from oqmd, materials_project, jarvis, mpaloe.
Comparison

How It Compares

As a member of the ternary sulfide family, Cu2SiS3 occupies a unique niche due to its specific elemental composition, which offers a distinct alternative to more traditional chalcogenide semiconductors. Its near-hull stability suggests it can be successfully integrated into complex material systems where precise electronic control is required.

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)
  • mpaloe — Data from MP-ALOE. Cite: Kuner et al., npj Comput. Mater. (2025), doi:10.1038/s41524-025-01834-9.

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