InCl2

InCl2 is a stable, insulating inorganic compound containing indium and chlorine used primarily in chemical research.

ClIn
Crystal structure of InCl2 (orthorhombic, Pnna (No. 52))
Ground-state structure · Materials Project
Overview

About InCl2

InCl2 is a stable inorganic compound composed of indium and chlorine. It is characterized by its wide-band-gap insulating electronic properties, which distinguish it from more conductive metallic or semiconducting halides. Its position on the convex hull indicates high thermodynamic stability under standard conditions.

Due to its structural diversity, this compound is a subject of significant interest in materials science research. It plays a role in fundamental studies of indium-based halides and is utilized as a precursor or reagent in specialized chemical synthesis applications.

At a glance

Key Properties

Cross-validated computational properties for InCl2, aggregated across 3 databases.

Band Gap

0.16–2.44 eV
Range across DFT structures · ground state: wide gap

Energy Above Hull

0.000 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources

Stability

Stable
3 DFT sources

Structures

80
3 databases, 17 space groups
Validation

Cross-Source DFT Agreement

How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of InCl2. Tight agreement means computed properties can be trusted without re-running calculations.

Agreement Score

0.50 / 1.00
Trust tier: low

Hull Spread

0.124 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 InCl2, ranked by energy above hull.

Space GroupCrystal SystemBand Gap (eV)E above hull (eV/atom)E/atom (eV)Density (g/cm³)
Pnna (No. 52)orthorhombic3.110.0000-3.5703.24
Pnna (No. 52)orthorhombic2.440.0000-1.044—
——0.160.1244-1.140—
P4/mmm (No. 123)tetragonal0.000.1422-0.902—
——0.000.1429-1.121—
——0.000.2332-1.031—
P2/m (No. 10)monoclinic0.000.3941-0.650—
Pmmm (No. 47)orthorhombic0.000.3967-0.647—
——0.000.9444-0.320—
P1 (No. 1)triclinic———6.32
Cm (No. 8)monoclinic———6.73
P1 (No. 1)triclinic———7.14
Uses

Applications

Where InCl2 is used.

Chemical synthesisMaterials science researchPrecursor for indium-based materials
Reference

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about InCl2, answered from cross-validated data.

What is InCl2?

InCl2 is a stable, insulating inorganic compound containing indium and chlorine used primarily in chemical research.

More questions
What is InCl2 used for?
InCl2 is used in chemical synthesis, materials science research, and precursor for indium-based materials.
What is the band gap of InCl2?
InCl2 has a DFT-computed band gap of 0.16–2.44 eV across 80 reported structures. Standard DFT underestimates band gaps, so the measured gap is typically larger.
Is InCl2 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
DFT predicts a band gap of up to 2.44 eV (a semiconductor). Measured gaps are typically larger.
Is InCl2 thermodynamically stable?
Yes — InCl2 sits on the convex hull (energy above hull 0 eV/atom), i.e. stable.
What is the crystal structure of InCl2?
The reference structure of InCl2 is orthorhombic symmetry, space group Pnna (No. 52).
What is the density of InCl2?
The computed density of the ground-state structure of InCl2 is 3.24 g/cm³.
How many polymorphs of InCl2 are known?
80 structures of InCl2 are reported across 3 databases, spanning 17 distinct space groups.
What elements does InCl2 contain?
InCl2 contains Cl and In (2 elements).
Where does the data for InCl2 come from?
InCl2 data is cross-referenced from materials_project, jarvis, oqmd, mpaloe.
Comparison

How It Compares

As a distinct indium-based halide, InCl2 occupies a unique niche in inorganic chemistry. While many indium halides exhibit varying oxidation states and structural arrangements, this compound is notable for its thermodynamic stability and insulating nature, providing a baseline for understanding the broader behavior of metal-halide systems.

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

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