Mn2Sn
Mn2Sn is a metallic manganese-tin intermetallic compound known for its structural polymorphism and metastable nature.
About Mn2Sn
Mn2Sn is a metallic intermetallic compound composed of manganese and tin. Its electronic character is defined by a lack of a band gap, identifying it as a conductor that reflects the typical behavior of transition metal-based alloys.
Despite its thermodynamic instability, as indicated by its position above the hull, the compound remains a subject of significant interest in materials science. Its structural diversity is evidenced by the numerous configurations reported across multiple databases, highlighting the complex phase space of this binary system.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Mn2Sn, aggregated across 6 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 Mn2Sn. 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 Mn2Sn, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P63/mmc (No. 194) | hexagonal | 0.00 | 0.1613 | -17.876 | 7.85 |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.1725 | 0.128 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.1734 | 0.129 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.2532 | 0.209 | — |
| P63/mmc (No. 194) | hexagonal | 0.00 | 0.2739 | 0.274 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.2953 | 0.251 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.5245 | 0.480 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 1.5784 | 1.534 | — |
| Cm (No. 8) | monoclinic | — | — | — | 7.13 |
| P1 (No. 1) | triclinic | — | — | — | 5.05 |
| P1 (No. 1) | triclinic | — | — | — | 7.60 |
| P1 (No. 1) | triclinic | — | — | — | 6.23 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Mn2Sn, answered from cross-validated data.
What is Mn2Sn?
Mn2Sn is a metallic manganese-tin intermetallic compound known for its structural polymorphism and metastable nature.
What is the band gap of Mn2Sn?
Is Mn2Sn a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is Mn2Sn thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of Mn2Sn?
What is the density of Mn2Sn?
How many polymorphs of Mn2Sn are known?
What elements does Mn2Sn contain?
Where does the data for Mn2Sn come from?
How It Compares
As a binary intermetallic compound, Mn2Sn occupies a unique space in materials research where its metallic nature and structural polymorphism define its behavior. While it lacks the long-term thermodynamic stability of ground-state phases, its high degree of structural variety makes it a notable case study for understanding metastable phase formation in transition metal alloys.
Data sources & attribution
- materials_project — Data from the Materials Project (materialsproject.org). Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013). (CC-BY-4.0)
- 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)
- mpaloe — Data from MP-ALOE. Cite: Kuner et al., npj Comput. Mater. (2025), doi:10.1038/s41524-025-01834-9.
Analyze Mn2Sn in the Lattice Graph platform
Polymorph comparison, confidence scoring, supply-chain risk, and patent monitoring — across 85 source databases.
Explore the Platform →