Ge2Hg4O8

Ge2Hg4O8 is a semiconducting oxide of germanium and mercury that is considered potentially synthesizable due to its favorable thermodynamic stability.

GeHgO
Crystal structure of Ge2Hg4O8
Ground-state structure · Materials Project
Overview

About Ge2Hg4O8

Ge2Hg4O8 is a complex oxide composed of germanium, mercury, and oxygen. As a semiconducting material, it occupies a unique position in solid-state chemistry, offering potential for specialized electronic applications where precise band structure control is required.

Its status as a near-hull compound suggests that it is thermodynamically accessible and likely synthesizable under appropriate laboratory conditions. With multiple reported structures across various databases, it represents a significant, albeit specialized, area of study for researchers investigating mercury-based semiconductor systems.

At a glance

Key Properties

Cross-validated computational properties for Ge2Hg4O8, aggregated across 3 databases.

Band Gap

0.95–1.02 eV
Range across DFT structures

Energy Above Hull

0.013 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources

Stability

Near hull (likely stable)
2 DFT sources

Structures

4
3 databases, 2 space groups
Uses

Applications

Where Ge2Hg4O8 is used.

Semiconductor researchSolid-state chemistry studiesMaterials science exploration
Reference

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Ge2Hg4O8, answered from cross-validated data.

What is Ge2Hg4O8?

Ge2Hg4O8 is a semiconducting oxide of germanium and mercury that is considered potentially synthesizable due to its favorable thermodynamic stability.

More questions
What is Ge2Hg4O8 used for?
Ge2Hg4O8 is used in semiconductor research, solid-state chemistry studies, and materials science exploration.
What is the band gap of Ge2Hg4O8?
Ge2Hg4O8 has a DFT-computed band gap of 0.95–1.02 eV across 4 reported structures.
Is Ge2Hg4O8 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
With a band gap up to 1.02 eV it is a semiconductor.
Is Ge2Hg4O8 thermodynamically stable?
Ge2Hg4O8 has a lowest energy above hull of 0.013 eV/atom (near hull (likely stable)).
How many polymorphs of Ge2Hg4O8 are known?
4 structures of Ge2Hg4O8 are reported across 3 databases, spanning 2 distinct space groups.
What elements does Ge2Hg4O8 contain?
Ge2Hg4O8 contains Ge, Hg, and O (3 elements).
Where does the data for Ge2Hg4O8 come from?
Ge2Hg4O8 data is cross-referenced from latticegraph.
Comparison

How It Compares

As a relatively rare oxide system, Ge2Hg4O8 serves as a foundational example of how heavy metal cations like mercury can be integrated into germanium-oxygen frameworks to tune electronic properties, distinguishing it from more common, highly stable binary oxides.

Data sources & attribution
  • latticegraph — Lattice Graph Materials Intelligence Platform

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