CuTe
copper telluride · vulcanite
CuTe is a stable, metallic copper telluride compound characterized by extensive structural data.
About copper telluride
Copper telluride is a binary inorganic compound that exhibits distinct metallic character. As a thermodynamically stable phase located on the convex hull, it represents a robust material system that has been extensively characterized across numerous structural studies.
Its unique electronic properties and inherent stability make it a subject of significant interest in materials science. Researchers frequently investigate this compound to understand the fundamental interactions between copper and tellurium in solid-state systems.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for copper telluride, aggregated across 6 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 CuTe. 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 CuTe, 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 | -0.063 | — |
| Pmmn (No. 59) | orthorhombic | 0.00 | 0.0000 | -0.036 | — |
| Pmmn (No. 59) | orthorhombic | 0.00 | 0.0000 | -18.216 | 6.71 |
| Pmmn (No. 59) | orthorhombic | 0.00 | 0.0000 | -0.036 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.0129 | -0.050 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.0274 | -0.036 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.0335 | -0.030 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.0349 | -0.028 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.0521 | -0.011 | — |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 0.00 | 0.0589 | 0.023 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.0632 | 0.000 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.0853 | 0.022 | — |
Applications
Where copper telluride is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about copper telluride, answered from cross-validated data.
What is CuTe?
CuTe is a stable, metallic copper telluride compound characterized by extensive structural data.
What is CuTe used for?
What is the band gap of CuTe?
Is CuTe a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is CuTe thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of CuTe?
How many polymorphs of CuTe are known?
What elements does CuTe contain?
Where does the data for CuTe come from?
How It Compares
As a prominent member of the copper-tellurium binary system, this compound is notable for its thermodynamic stability and structural versatility, serving as a primary reference point for understanding the phase behavior of metal chalcogenides.
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)
- jarvis — Data from JARVIS (jarvis.nist.gov), NIST. Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020). (LicenseRef-US-Gov-PD)
- materials_project — Data from the Materials Project (materialsproject.org). Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013). (CC-BY-4.0)
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