VO
vanadium monoxide · vanadium(II) oxide
Vanadium monoxide is a semiconducting transition metal oxide that serves as a key subject in the study of refractory materials and electrochromic systems.
About vanadium monoxide
Vanadium monoxide is a semiconducting oxide that sits within the refractory-metal oxide family. It is recognized for its structural versatility, supported by a significant body of existing research and numerous reported structural configurations that underscore its complexity in solid-state chemistry.
As a near-hull material, it is considered a viable candidate for synthesis and experimental investigation. Its electronic character and stability profile make it an intriguing subject for those studying the fundamental properties of transition metal oxides and their potential integration into functional thin-film devices.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for vanadium monoxide, 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 VO. 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 VO, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | 1.19 | 0.0015 | -2.261 | — |
| — | — | 1.19 | 0.0029 | -2.260 | — |
| Fm-3m (No. 225) | cubic | 0.97 | 0.0218 | -9.106 | 5.32 |
| R-3m (No. 166) | trigonal | 0.79 | 0.0225 | -9.106 | 5.25 |
| C2/m (No. 12) | monoclinic | 1.34 | 0.0268 | -9.101 | 5.59 |
| P4/nmm (No. 129) | tetragonal | 1.55 | 0.0626 | -9.065 | 5.16 |
| R-3m (No. 166) | trigonal | 1.74 | 0.0757 | -9.052 | 5.14 |
| — | — | 0.81 | 0.1049 | -2.158 | — |
| — | — | 0.70 | 0.1068 | -2.156 | — |
| P21/m (No. 11) | monoclinic | 0.00 | 0.1730 | -1.917 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.1746 | -2.088 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.2459 | -2.017 | — |
Applications
Where vanadium monoxide is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about vanadium monoxide, answered from cross-validated data.
What is VO?
Vanadium monoxide is a semiconducting transition metal oxide that serves as a key subject in the study of refractory materials and electrochromic systems.
What is VO used for?
What is the band gap of VO?
Is VO a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is VO thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of VO?
What is the density of VO?
How many polymorphs of VO are known?
What elements does VO contain?
Where does the data for VO come from?
How It Compares
Within the electrochromic and refractory-metal oxides class.
Within the broader class of electrochromic and refractory-metal oxides, VO represents a lower-oxidation state alternative to the more commonly utilized V2O5. While V2O5 is widely recognized for its prominent electrochromic switching capabilities, VO offers a distinct electronic environment that provides researchers with a different baseline for exploring phase transitions and optical modulation compared to its higher-valent siblings like MoO3 or WO3.
Related Compounds
Other Electrochromic and Refractory-Metal Oxides in the database.
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)
- materials_project — Data from the Materials Project (materialsproject.org). Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013). (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.
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