Os
osmium · Os
Osmium is a dense, stable, and highly durable transition metal prized for its exceptional physical properties in specialized industrial and scientific applications.
About osmium
Osmium is a rare, naturally occurring transition metal characterized by its metallic electronic structure and exceptional thermodynamic stability. As a member of the platinum group, it is recognized for its remarkable density and resistance to corrosion, making it a highly specialized material in demanding engineering environments. Its structural integrity is well-documented, with numerous reported crystalline arrangements that highlight its versatility as a pure elemental solid. Because of its unique physical properties, it serves as a critical component in applications requiring extreme durability and chemical inertness. It is frequently utilized in high-performance alloys and specialized electrical contacts where longevity and stability under harsh conditions are paramount.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for osmium, aggregated across 5 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 Os. 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 Os, 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 | 0.0000 | -52.985 | 22.36 |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 0.00 | 0.1649 | -52.820 | 22.24 |
| P21/c (No. 14) | monoclinic | 0.00 | 0.2344 | -52.751 | 21.55 |
| Im-3m (No. 229) | cubic | 0.00 | 0.8828 | -52.102 | 21.25 |
| P21/c (No. 14) | monoclinic | 0.00 | 3.9035 | -49.082 | 3.48 |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | Cubic | — | — | — | 21.91 |
| Im-3m (No. 229) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | — | — | — | — | — |
| P21/c (No. 14) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | — | — | — | — | — |
| P63/mmc (No. 194) | Hexagonal | — | — | — | 22.34 |
| No. 0 | unknown | — | — | — | 5.37 |
Applications
Where osmium is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about osmium, answered from cross-validated data.
What is Os?
Osmium is a dense, stable, and highly durable transition metal prized for its exceptional physical properties in specialized industrial and scientific applications.
What is Os used for?
What is the band gap of Os?
Is Os a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is Os thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of Os?
What is the density of Os?
How many polymorphs of Os are known?
What elements does Os contain?
Where does the data for Os come from?
How It Compares
As a pure elemental metal, osmium stands as a unique reference point for high-density materials, representing the pinnacle of structural stability within its elemental class.
Data sources & attribution
- materials_project — Data from the Materials Project. Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013).
- mpaloe — Data from mpaloe.
- nomad — Data from NOMAD. Cite: Draxl & Scheffler, J. Phys. Mater. 2, 036001 (2019).
- jarvis — Data from JARVIS (NIST). Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020).
- cod — Data from the Crystallography Open Database. Cite: Grazulis et al., Nucleic Acids Res. 40, D420 (2012).
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