PuO2
PuO2 has a DFT band gap of 1.96 eV across 43 reported structures in 10 space groups; its reference structure is cubic (Fm-3m (No. 225)). Cross-validated across 3 computational databases.
OPu
At a glance
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for PuO2, 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.
1.96 eV
Range across DFT structures · ground state: narrow gap
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.
0.000 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources
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.
Stable
3 DFT sources
StructuresCount of reported calculated crystal structures for this formula, including alternate polymorphs, source databases, and observed space groups.
43
3 databases, 10 space groups
Validation
Cross-Source DFT Agreement
How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of PuO2. 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.
1.00 / 1.00
Trust tier: high
Hull SpreadDifference between the highest and lowest energy-above-hull values reported by comparable sources. Smaller spread means less thermodynamic disagreement.
0.000 eV
EAH spread across sources
Sources ComparedNumber and names of computational sources with comparable entries for this formula.
3
jarvis, materials_project, oqmd
Space Group ConsensusWhether independent sources predict the same crystal symmetry for the lowest-energy structure.
All match
Crystallography
Reported Structures
Lowest-energy structures reported for PuO2, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | 1.96 | 0.0000 | -3.400 | — |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 0.00 | 0.0000 | -3.553 | — |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 0.00 | 0.0000 | -11.704 | 11.85 |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 0.00 | 0.0000 | -3.553 | — |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 0.00 | 0.0002 | -3.552 | — |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 0.00 | 0.0002 | -3.552 | — |
| P42/mnm (No. 136) | tetragonal | 0.00 | 0.1050 | -11.599 | 10.00 |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.1388 | -3.261 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.7296 | -2.670 | — |
| Cm (No. 8) | monoclinic | — | — | — | 8.27 |
| P-1 (No. 2) | triclinic | — | — | — | 10.95 |
| P1 (No. 1) | triclinic | — | — | — | 10.40 |
Intellectual Property
Patent Landscape
5 patents reference PuO2 or close compositional variants.
| Patent | Title | Assignee | Granted |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4042670 | Process of making oxygen enriched plutonium dioxide (PuO.sub.2) | — | — |
| 4686019 | Dissolution of PuO.sub.2 or NpO.sub.2 using electrolytically regenerated reagents | — | — |
| 4565672 | Method for the manufacture of PuO.sub.2 -containing crystals | — | — |
| 5069827 | Process for reducing and dissolving PuO.sub.2 | — | — |
| 4298579 | Method of producing PuO.sub.2 by calcination of Pu oxalate produced by discontinuous precipitation from soluti | — | — |
Reference
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about PuO2, answered from cross-validated data.
What is the band gap of PuO2?
PuO2 has a DFT-computed band gap of 1.96 eV across 43 reported structures. Standard DFT underestimates band gaps, so the measured gap is typically larger.
More questions
Is PuO2 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
DFT predicts a band gap of up to 1.96 eV (a semiconductor). Measured gaps are typically larger.
Is PuO2 thermodynamically stable?
Yes — PuO2 sits on the convex hull (energy above hull 0 eV/atom), i.e. stable.
What is the crystal structure of PuO2?
The reference structure of PuO2 is cubic symmetry, space group Fm-3m (No. 225).
How many polymorphs of PuO2 are known?
43 structures of PuO2 are reported across 3 databases, spanning 10 distinct space groups.
What elements does PuO2 contain?
PuO2 contains O and Pu (2 elements).
Where does the data for PuO2 come from?
PuO2 data is cross-referenced from oqmd, jarvis, materials_project, mpaloe.
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)
- mpaloe — Data from MP-ALOE. Cite: Kuner et al., npj Comput. Mater. (2025), doi:10.1038/s41524-025-01834-9.
Analyze PuO2 in the Lattice Graph platform
Polymorph comparison, confidence scoring, supply-chain risk, and patent monitoring — across 85 source databases.
Explore the Platform →