InP
Indium phosphide · InP
Indium phosphide is a high-performance semiconductor material essential for the manufacturing of high-speed electronic and optoelectronic devices.
About Indium phosphide
Indium phosphide is a binary III-V semiconductor that occupies a central position in modern materials science due to its robust thermodynamic stability. Its electronic structure makes it a highly efficient material for high-frequency electronic devices and advanced photonic applications.
As a widely studied material with a vast array of documented structural phases, it serves as a cornerstone for high-performance optoelectronic components. Its ability to facilitate rapid electron mobility ensures its continued relevance in the development of next-generation communication technologies.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Indium phosphide, aggregated across 5 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 InP. 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 InP, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | 0.73 | 0.0000 | -0.351 | — |
| F-43m (No. 216) | cubic | 0.47 | 0.0000 | -16.149 | 4.71 |
| F-43m (No. 216) | cubic | 0.33 | 0.0000 | -0.224 | — |
| F-43m (No. 216) | cubic | 0.33 | 0.0000 | -0.224 | — |
| P63mc (No. 186) | hexagonal | 0.51 | 0.0039 | -16.145 | 4.70 |
| — | — | 0.73 | 0.0058 | -0.345 | — |
| — | — | 0.72 | 0.0059 | -0.345 | — |
| P63mc (No. 186) | hexagonal | 0.38 | 0.0073 | -0.217 | — |
| P63mc (No. 186) | hexagonal | 0.38 | 0.0073 | -0.217 | — |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 0.00 | 0.2134 | -0.011 | — |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 0.00 | 0.2353 | -15.913 | 5.70 |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.2454 | -0.106 | — |
Applications
Where Indium phosphide is used.
Patent Landscape
7 patents reference InP or close compositional variants.
| Patent | Title | Assignee | Granted |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4049373 | Apparatus for producing compact polycrystalline InP and GaP ingots | — | — |
| 11746289 | InP-based nanocluster, and method of preparing InP-based nanoparticle | — | — |
| 11578266 | Silyl phosphine compound, process for producing silyl phosphine compound and process for producing InP quantum | — | — |
| 7648689 | Process for the production of InP fine particles and InP fine particle dispersion obtained by the process | — | — |
| 4388383 | Devices having chemically modified p-type InP surfaces | — | — |
| 11512253 | Fabrication method of InP based quantum dot by using aminophosphine type P precursor and core size-sorting pro | — | — |
| 11692134 | Method for producing InP quantum dot precursor and method for producing InP-based quantum dot | — | — |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Indium phosphide, answered from cross-validated data.
What is InP?
Indium phosphide is a high-performance semiconductor material essential for the manufacturing of high-speed electronic and optoelectronic devices.
What is InP used for?
What is the band gap of InP?
Is InP a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is InP thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of InP?
What is the density of InP?
How many polymorphs of InP are known?
What elements does InP contain?
Where does the data for InP come from?
How It Compares
Within the iii-v semiconductors class.
Within the family of III-V semiconductors, indium phosphide is distinguished by its superior carrier mobility compared to wide-gap members like aluminum nitride or gallium nitride, making it better suited for high-speed signal processing and infrared detection.
Related Compounds
Other III-V Semiconductors in the database.
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.
Analyze InP in the Lattice Graph platform
Polymorph comparison, confidence scoring, supply-chain risk, and patent monitoring — across 85 source databases.
Explore the Platform →