K2O
Potassium oxide · Dipotassium oxide
Potassium oxide is a stable, semiconducting inorganic compound consisting of potassium and oxygen that is widely used as a chemical precursor.
About Potassium oxide
Potassium oxide is a binary inorganic compound that exists as a thermodynamically stable phase on the convex hull. As a semiconducting material, it plays a critical role in various chemical processes and serves as a fundamental building block in alkali metal chemistry.
Due to its high reactivity and specific electronic character, this compound is primarily utilized as a precursor in the synthesis of more complex potassium-containing materials. It remains a subject of significant interest in materials science research, supported by a vast array of reported structural configurations.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Potassium oxide, 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 K2O. 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 K2O, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immm (No. 71) | orthorhombic | 1.99 | 0.0000 | -1.258 | — |
| — | — | 1.94 | 0.0000 | -1.164 | — |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 1.71 | 0.0000 | -3.637 | 2.41 |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 2.03 | 0.0003 | -1.257 | — |
| R-3m (No. 166) | trigonal | 2.00 | 0.0010 | -1.256 | — |
| — | — | 2.12 | 0.0013 | -1.162 | — |
| — | — | 2.05 | 0.0015 | -1.162 | — |
| — | — | 2.06 | 0.0046 | -1.159 | — |
| Pbca (No. 61) | orthorhombic | 1.33 | 0.0204 | -3.617 | 2.34 |
| — | — | 0.77 | 0.0270 | -1.137 | — |
| Pbca (No. 61) | orthorhombic | 1.58 | 0.0284 | -1.229 | — |
| Pnnm (No. 58) | orthorhombic | 0.66 | 0.0296 | -3.608 | 2.04 |
Applications
Where Potassium oxide is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Potassium oxide, answered from cross-validated data.
What is K2O?
Potassium oxide is a stable, semiconducting inorganic compound consisting of potassium and oxygen that is widely used as a chemical precursor.
What is K2O used for?
What is the band gap of K2O?
Is K2O a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is K2O thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of K2O?
What is the density of K2O?
How many polymorphs of K2O are known?
What elements does K2O contain?
Where does the data for K2O come from?
How It Compares
As a foundational alkali metal oxide, this compound serves as a primary reference point for understanding the behavior of group one oxides, establishing the baseline for reactivity and structural stability within its chemical class.
Data sources & attribution
- 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)
- 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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