Li4SiO4
Lithium orthosilicate · Lithium silicate
Lithium orthosilicate is a stable, insulating ceramic material widely used as a tritium breeder in nuclear fusion technology.
About Lithium orthosilicate
Lithium orthosilicate is a thermodynamically stable member of the lithium oxide class, characterized by its wide-band-gap insulating electronic profile. Its structural robustness and chemical versatility make it a significant material in high-temperature applications and energy research.
Due to its favorable stoichiometry, this compound is primarily utilized as a tritium breeder material in fusion reactor blankets. Its ability to maintain structural integrity under demanding conditions distinguishes it as a reliable candidate for advanced ceramic engineering and solid-state ionics.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Lithium orthosilicate, aggregated across 3 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 Li4SiO4. 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 Li4SiO4, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | 5.20 | 0.0000 | -2.558 | — |
| P-1 (No. 2) | triclinic | 5.10 | 0.0000 | -2.553 | — |
| P-1 (No. 2) | triclinic | 4.78 | 0.0000 | -6.325 | 2.45 |
| P21 (No. 4) | monoclinic | 6.20 | 0.0018 | -6.323 | 2.45 |
| P21/m (No. 11) | monoclinic | 5.14 | 0.0027 | -6.323 | 2.35 |
| — | — | 5.77 | 0.0064 | -2.552 | — |
| P1 (No. 1) | triclinic | 5.09 | 0.0303 | -6.295 | 2.30 |
| P1 (No. 1) | triclinic | 4.66 | 0.0596 | -6.266 | 2.24 |
| P21/m (No. 11) | monoclinic | — | — | — | 2.41 |
| P21/m (No. 11) | monoclinic | — | — | — | 2.39 |
| P1 (No. 1) | triclinic | — | — | — | 2.41 |
| P21/m (No. 11) | monoclinic | — | — | — | 2.40 |
Synthesis Routes
Literature-extracted synthesis procedures targeting Li4SiO4.
Applications
Where Lithium orthosilicate is used.
Patent Landscape
1 patent reference Li4SiO4 or close compositional variants.
| Patent | Title | Assignee | Granted |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12344532 | Methods for preparing two-dimensional sheet-like Li4SiO4 adsorbents using attapulgite and waste lithium batter | — | — |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Lithium orthosilicate, answered from cross-validated data.
What is Li4SiO4?
Lithium orthosilicate is a stable, insulating ceramic material widely used as a tritium breeder in nuclear fusion technology.
What is Li4SiO4 used for?
What is the band gap of Li4SiO4?
Is Li4SiO4 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is Li4SiO4 thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of Li4SiO4?
What is the density of Li4SiO4?
How many polymorphs of Li4SiO4 are known?
How is Li4SiO4 synthesized?
What elements does Li4SiO4 contain?
Where does the data for Li4SiO4 come from?
How It Compares
Within the lithium oxides class.
Unlike the transition-metal-based lithium oxides such as LiCoO2 or LiNiO2, which are prized for their electrochemical activity in battery cathodes, Li4SiO4 functions primarily as a structural and functional ceramic. While its siblings like Li2TiO3 share its role in nuclear applications, Li4SiO4 is distinct for its insulating nature compared to the semi-conductive or metallic behavior often found in the cathode-active members of the lithium oxide family.
Related Compounds
Other Lithium Oxides 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)
- jarvis — Data from JARVIS (jarvis.nist.gov), NIST. Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020). (LicenseRef-US-Gov-PD)
- materials_project — Data from the Materials Project (materialsproject.org). Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013). (CC-BY-4.0)
- cod — Data from the Crystallography Open Database (crystallography.net/cod/). Cite: Grazulis et al., J. Appl. Cryst. 42, 726 (2009). (CC0-1.0)
- mpaloe — Data from MP-ALOE. Cite: Kuner et al., npj Comput. Mater. (2025), doi:10.1038/s41524-025-01834-9.
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