Mg2SiO4
Forsterite · Magnesium orthosilicate
Mg2SiO4 is a stable, insulating magnesium silicate mineral that is essential to both planetary geology and the production of high-performance technical ceramics.
About Forsterite
Mg2SiO4 is a robust, thermodynamically stable magnesium silicate that serves as a fundamental building block in geological and materials science. As a wide-gap insulator, it exhibits excellent dielectric properties and structural integrity under extreme conditions.
Its significance spans from planetary science, where it constitutes a major portion of the upper mantle, to advanced industrial applications. Due to its high structural stability and resistance to thermal degradation, it is a preferred material for specialized ceramic components and refractory linings.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Forsterite, 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.
Synthesis Routes
Literature-extracted synthesis procedures targeting Mg2SiO4.
Applications
Where Forsterite is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Forsterite, answered from cross-validated data.
What is Mg2SiO4?
Mg2SiO4 is a stable, insulating magnesium silicate mineral that is essential to both planetary geology and the production of high-performance technical ceramics.
What is Mg2SiO4 used for?
What is the band gap of Mg2SiO4?
Is Mg2SiO4 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is Mg2SiO4 thermodynamically stable?
How many polymorphs of Mg2SiO4 are known?
How is Mg2SiO4 synthesized?
What elements does Mg2SiO4 contain?
Where does the data for Mg2SiO4 come from?
How It Compares
As a highly stable and well-characterized compound with extensive structural data, Mg2SiO4 serves as the definitive archetype for magnesium-based silicates. It represents the standard for thermodynamic stability within its chemical family, providing a baseline for understanding the phase behavior and insulating properties of related mineral systems.
Data sources & attribution
- latticegraph — Lattice Graph Materials Intelligence Platform
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