RuC
RuC is a semiconducting ruthenium carbide that is typically found in a metastable state.
About RuC
RuC is a ruthenium-based carbide characterized by its semiconducting electronic nature. Despite its distinct chemical composition, it is considered a metastable phase that sits above the thermodynamic hull, indicating that it is not the most stable configuration for these elements under standard conditions.
Due to its intriguing electronic properties, this compound has been the subject of extensive structural investigation, with hundreds of reported structures across various databases. Its role remains primarily focused on fundamental materials research into transition metal carbides and their potential electronic behaviors.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for RuC, 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.
Cross-Source DFT Agreement
How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of RuC. 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 RuC, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R-3m (No. 166) | trigonal | 0.00 | 0.3352 | 0.334 | — |
| R-3m (No. 166) | trigonal | 0.00 | 0.3661 | -17.320 | 8.89 |
| F-43m (No. 216) | cubic | 0.66 | 0.4188 | 0.417 | — |
| F-43m (No. 216) | cubic | 0.66 | 0.4538 | -17.232 | 7.89 |
| — | — | 0.70 | 0.4797 | 0.480 | — |
| P-6m2 (No. 187) | hexagonal | 0.00 | 0.6196 | 0.618 | — |
| P-6m2 (No. 187) | hexagonal | 0.00 | 0.6196 | 0.618 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.6484 | 0.648 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.6485 | 0.649 | — |
| P-6m2 (No. 187) | hexagonal | 0.00 | 0.6494 | -17.036 | 9.38 |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 0.00 | 0.8631 | 0.862 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.9090 | 0.909 | — |
Applications
Where RuC is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about RuC, answered from cross-validated data.
What is RuC?
RuC is a semiconducting ruthenium carbide that is typically found in a metastable state.
What is RuC used for?
What is the band gap of RuC?
Is RuC a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is RuC thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of RuC?
How many polymorphs of RuC are known?
What elements does RuC contain?
Where does the data for RuC come from?
How It Compares
As a metastable semiconducting carbide, RuC represents a specialized case within the broader landscape of transition metal compounds, where high-pressure or non-equilibrium synthesis routes are often explored to stabilize such phases for study.
Data sources & attribution
- 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)
- 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)
- mpaloe — Data from MP-ALOE. Cite: Kuner et al., npj Comput. Mater. (2025), doi:10.1038/s41524-025-01834-9.
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