HI

Hydrogen iodide · Hydriodic acid

Hydrogen iodide is a stable, insulating binary compound of hydrogen and iodine widely utilized as a chemical reagent.

HI
Crystal structure of HI (monoclinic, C2/c (No. 15))
Ground-state structure · Materials Project
Overview

About Hydrogen iodide

Hydrogen iodide is a binary inorganic compound composed of hydrogen and iodine. It functions as a wide-gap insulator, exhibiting electronic characteristics typical of stable molecular halides that are well-represented in structural databases.

Due to its position near the thermodynamic hull, this compound is considered a viable and synthesizable material. Its chemical nature makes it a significant reagent in various synthetic pathways, particularly in organic chemistry and specialized industrial processes.

At a glance

Key Properties

Cross-validated computational properties for Hydrogen iodide, aggregated across 6 databases.

Band Gap

0.32–4.08 eV
Range across DFT structures · ground state: insulator

Energy Above Hull

0.000 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources

Stability

Stable
5 DFT sources

Structures

204
6 databases, 26 space groups
Validation

Cross-Source DFT Agreement

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

Agreement Score

0.74 / 1.00
Trust tier: medium

Hull Spread

0.065 eV
EAH spread across sources

Sources Compared

3
jarvis, materials_project, oqmd

Space Group Consensus

All match
Crystallography

Reported Structures

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

Space GroupCrystal SystemBand Gap (eV)E above hull (eV/atom)E/atom (eV)Density (g/cm³)
——3.320.0000-0.067—
——3.240.0006-0.066—
——3.340.0023-0.064—
C2/c (No. 15)monoclinic4.080.0044-2.6353.42
——3.440.0360-0.031—
C2/c (No. 15)monoclinic3.220.06510.064—
——2.330.07650.010—
——1.420.17740.111—
——0.000.27450.208—
——0.320.59490.528—
——0.000.98560.919—
——0.000.98620.920—
Uses

Applications

Where Hydrogen iodide is used.

Reducing agent in organic synthesisPrecursor for alkyl iodidesCatalyst in industrial chemical processes
Reference

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Hydrogen iodide, answered from cross-validated data.

What is HI?

Hydrogen iodide is a stable, insulating binary compound of hydrogen and iodine widely utilized as a chemical reagent.

More questions
What is HI used for?
Hydrogen iodide (HI) is used in reducing agent in organic synthesis, precursor for alkyl iodides, and catalyst in industrial chemical processes.
What is the band gap of HI?
Hydrogen iodide (HI) has a DFT-computed band gap of 0.32–4.08 eV across 204 reported structures. Standard DFT underestimates band gaps, so the measured gap is typically larger.
Is HI a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
DFT predicts a wide band gap of up to 4.08 eV (an insulator or wide-band-gap material).
Is HI thermodynamically stable?
Yes — Hydrogen iodide (HI) sits on the convex hull (energy above hull 0 eV/atom), i.e. stable.
What is the crystal structure of HI?
The reference structure of Hydrogen iodide (HI) is monoclinic symmetry, space group C2/c (No. 15).
What is the density of HI?
The computed density of the ground-state structure of Hydrogen iodide (HI) is 3.42 g/cm³.
How many polymorphs of HI are known?
204 structures of HI are reported across 6 databases, spanning 26 distinct space groups.
What elements does HI contain?
Hydrogen iodide (HI) contains H and I (2 elements).
Where does the data for HI come from?
HI data is cross-referenced from oqmd, materials_project, jarvis, mpaloe.
Comparison

How It Compares

As a fundamental binary halide, hydrogen iodide serves as a foundational reference point for understanding the behavior of hydrogen-based acidic gases. It occupies a distinct role in chemical synthesis, providing a unique reactivity profile that differentiates it from other simple hydrogen halides.

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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