Li2N
Li2N is a metallic, metastable compound of lithium and nitrogen that is primarily studied for its structural complexity and electronic properties.

About Li2N
Li2N is a binary compound composed of lithium and nitrogen that exhibits distinct metallic character. Due to its electronic configuration, it lacks a band gap, placing it in a unique category of conductive materials that differ significantly from typical insulating nitrides.
Despite its simple stoichiometry, this material is characterized by a high degree of structural diversity, with numerous reported configurations across various databases. Its position relative to the thermodynamic ground state suggests it is a metastable phase, making it a compelling subject for studies on high-pressure synthesis and chemical reactivity.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Li2N, aggregated across 4 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 Li2N. 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.
Synthesis Routes
Literature-extracted synthesis procedures targeting Li2N.
Applications
Where Li2N is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Li2N, answered from cross-validated data.
What is Li2N?
Li2N is a metallic, metastable compound of lithium and nitrogen that is primarily studied for its structural complexity and electronic properties.
What is Li2N used for?
What is the band gap of Li2N?
Is Li2N a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is Li2N thermodynamically stable?
How many polymorphs of Li2N are known?
How is Li2N synthesized?
What elements does Li2N contain?
Where does the data for Li2N come from?
How It Compares
As a metallic lithium-nitrogen phase, Li2N represents a specialized case within binary nitrides. Unlike more common, thermodynamically stable insulating nitrides, this compound is notable for its metallic nature and its status as a metastable phase, highlighting the complex phase landscape of the lithium-nitrogen system.
Data sources & attribution
- latticegraph — Lattice Graph Materials Intelligence Platform
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