Mg3ZnO4
Mg3ZnO4 is a metastable spinel oxide material with wide-gap insulating properties used in advanced catalytic research.
About Mg3ZnO4
Mg3ZnO4 is a complex spinel oxide characterized by its wide-gap insulating electronic structure. As a metastable phase, it represents a unique configuration within the spinel family, offering distinct structural pathways for catalytic activity. Its composition of magnesium, zinc, and oxygen provides a stable framework for investigating charge transport and surface reactivity in oxide systems. This compound is primarily of interest in materials science research, where its specific structural arrangement is leveraged to explore catalytic performance. Its insulating nature makes it a subject of study for applications requiring wide-gap semiconductors or specialized dielectric properties in chemical processing environments.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Mg3ZnO4, 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.
Reported Structures
Lowest-energy structures reported for Mg3ZnO4, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pm-3m (No. 221) | cubic | 2.83 | 0.0325 | -5.937 | 4.28 |
| Cmmm (No. 65) | orthorhombic | 3.47 | 0.0331 | -5.936 | 4.29 |
| P4/mmm (No. 123) | tetragonal | 0.00 | 0.0345 | -5.935 | 4.29 |
| R-3m (No. 166) | trigonal | 3.16 | 0.0360 | -5.933 | 4.30 |
| Cmmm (No. 65) | — | — | — | — | — |
| P4/mmm (No. 123) | Tetragonal | — | — | — | 4.45 |
| P4/mmm (No. 123) | Tetragonal | — | — | — | 4.54 |
| P4/mmm (No. 123) | Tetragonal | — | — | — | 4.29 |
| Pm-3m (No. 221) | Cubic | — | — | — | 4.28 |
| Pm-3m (No. 221) | Cubic | — | — | — | 4.45 |
| R-3m (No. 166) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Pm-3m (No. 221) | Cubic | — | — | — | 4.52 |
Applications
Where Mg3ZnO4 is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Mg3ZnO4, answered from cross-validated data.
What is Mg3ZnO4?
Mg3ZnO4 is a metastable spinel oxide material with wide-gap insulating properties used in advanced catalytic research.
What is Mg3ZnO4 used for?
What is the band gap of Mg3ZnO4?
Is Mg3ZnO4 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is Mg3ZnO4 thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of Mg3ZnO4?
What is the density of Mg3ZnO4?
How many polymorphs of Mg3ZnO4 are known?
What elements does Mg3ZnO4 contain?
Where does the data for Mg3ZnO4 come from?
How It Compares
Within the spinel oxide catalysts class.
Within the diverse class of spinel and transition metal oxides, Mg3ZnO4 occupies a niche position compared to more common members like MgAl2O4 or ZnO. While MgAl2O4 is a highly stable, well-characterized structural spinel, Mg3ZnO4 exhibits metastability that differentiates its synthesis and stability profile. It serves as a specialized alternative to binary oxides like NiO or CuO, providing a more complex lattice environment that can be tuned for specific catalytic interactions.
Related Compounds
Other Spinel Oxide Catalysts in the database.
Data sources & attribution
- materials_project — Data from the Materials Project. Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013).
- jarvis — Data from JARVIS (NIST). Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020).
- mpaloe — Data from mpaloe.
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