SrAl2O4
Strontium aluminate · SAO
SrAl2O4 is a thermodynamically stable, insulating strontium aluminate oxide widely utilized as a host material for optical phosphors and structural ceramics.

About Strontium aluminate
Strontium aluminate is a robust, wide-gap insulating oxide that occupies a stable position on the convex hull. Its structural integrity and chemical resilience make it a vital material for high-performance applications where thermal and environmental stability are required.
Beyond its utility as a host lattice for luminescent materials, this compound serves as a significant member of the spinel-related oxide family. Its ability to maintain structural order across diverse synthesis conditions supports its role in advanced catalytic and optical technologies.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Strontium aluminate, aggregated across 4 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 SrAl2O4, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P21 (No. 4) | monoclinic | 4.14 | 0.0000 | -7.598 | 3.56 |
| P63 (No. 173) | hexagonal | 4.06 | 0.0060 | -7.592 | 3.57 |
| P6122 (No. 178) | hexagonal | 3.96 | 0.0118 | -7.586 | 3.46 |
| C2 (No. 5) | monoclinic | 3.90 | 0.0143 | -7.584 | 3.54 |
| P21 (No. 4) | — | — | — | — | — |
| C2 (No. 5) | Monoclinic | — | — | — | 3.55 |
| C2 (No. 5) | Monoclinic | — | — | — | 3.36 |
| C2 (No. 5) | Monoclinic | — | — | — | 3.46 |
| No. 0 | unknown | — | — | — | 0.99 |
| P21 (No. 4) | Monoclinic | — | — | — | 3.44 |
| P63 (No. 173) | — | — | — | — | — |
| No. 0 | unknown | — | — | — | 0.55 |
Synthesis Routes
Literature-extracted synthesis procedures targeting SrAl2O4.
Applications
Where Strontium aluminate is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Strontium aluminate, answered from cross-validated data.
What is SrAl2O4?
SrAl2O4 is a thermodynamically stable, insulating strontium aluminate oxide widely utilized as a host material for optical phosphors and structural ceramics.
What is SrAl2O4 used for?
What is the band gap of SrAl2O4?
Is SrAl2O4 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is SrAl2O4 thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of SrAl2O4?
What is the density of SrAl2O4?
How many polymorphs of SrAl2O4 are known?
How is SrAl2O4 synthesized?
What elements does SrAl2O4 contain?
Where does the data for SrAl2O4 come from?
How It Compares
Within the spinel oxide catalysts class.
Unlike transition metal-based spinel catalysts such as CuO or NiO, which are frequently studied for their redox-active electronic properties, SrAl2O4 acts as a wide-gap insulator. While it shares the structural robustness found in MgAl2O4, its specific electronic character distinguishes it from the more conductive perovskite-type oxides like LaNiO3 or LaMnO3, positioning it as a stable dielectric or host material rather than a primary electron-transfer catalyst.
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.
- cod — Data from the Crystallography Open Database. Cite: Grazulis et al., Nucleic Acids Res. 40, D420 (2012).
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