WO3
Tungsten trioxide · Tungstic anhydride, Tungstic oxide
Tungsten trioxide is a stable, semiconducting metal oxide valued for its ability to change color in response to electrical stimuli, making it ideal for smart glass and sensing technologies.
About Tungsten trioxide
Tungsten trioxide is a prominent semiconducting oxide known for its exceptional thermodynamic stability. As a key member of the refractory-metal oxide family, it exhibits a versatile structural chemistry that has been extensively documented across numerous research databases.
This compound is primarily recognized for its electrochromic properties, where it undergoes reversible color changes upon ion insertion. Its robust nature and tunable electronic structure make it an essential material for developing advanced smart windows, gas sensors, and high-performance electrochromic display technologies.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Tungsten trioxide, 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 WO3. 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 WO3, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | 1.50 | 0.0000 | -2.446 | — |
| Pbcn (No. 60) | orthorhombic | 1.35 | 0.0000 | -9.141 | 6.71 |
| Pbcm (No. 57) | orthorhombic | 1.23 | 0.0000 | -2.380 | — |
| — | — | 1.50 | 0.0001 | -2.446 | — |
| Pbcm (No. 57) | orthorhombic | 1.26 | 0.0001 | -9.141 | 6.66 |
| P-421m (No. 113) | tetragonal | 1.23 | 0.0003 | -2.380 | — |
| P-1 (No. 2) | triclinic | 1.45 | 0.0003 | -9.141 | 6.76 |
| Cmcm (No. 63) | orthorhombic | 1.27 | 0.0005 | -9.141 | 6.66 |
| Cmcm (No. 63) | orthorhombic | 1.40 | 0.0013 | -2.379 | — |
| — | — | 1.12 | 0.0022 | -2.444 | — |
| — | — | 0.76 | 0.0028 | -2.443 | — |
| — | — | 1.32 | 0.0051 | -2.441 | — |
Synthesis Routes
Literature-extracted synthesis procedures targeting WO3.
Applications
Where Tungsten trioxide is used.
Patent Landscape
4 patents reference WO3 or close compositional variants.
| Patent | Title | Assignee | Granted |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12247281 | Method for coating a substrate with a Co-PI modified BiVO4/WO3 heterostructure film | — | — |
| 4298665 | Cathode comprising the reaction product of Bi.sub.2 O.sub.3 and WO.sub.3 | — | — |
| 10183863 | Porous hollow shell WO3/WS2 nanomaterial and method of preparing same | — | — |
| 4303622 | Chemical treatment of low-grade wolframite concentrate having high Mo/WO.sub.3 ratio | — | — |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Tungsten trioxide, answered from cross-validated data.
What is WO3?
Tungsten trioxide is a stable, semiconducting metal oxide valued for its ability to change color in response to electrical stimuli, making it ideal for smart glass and sensing technologies.
What is WO3 used for?
What is the band gap of WO3?
Is WO3 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is WO3 thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of WO3?
What is the density of WO3?
How many polymorphs of WO3 are known?
How is WO3 synthesized?
What elements does WO3 contain?
Where does the data for WO3 come from?
How It Compares
Within the electrochromic and refractory-metal oxides class.
Within the class of refractory-metal oxides, tungsten trioxide stands out for its superior stability compared to various molybdenum oxides like MoO3 or MoO2. While it shares the functional versatility seen in V2O5 and Nb2O5 for electrochemical applications, its specific structural evolution and reliable performance under diverse conditions make it one of the most widely utilized materials in the field.
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)
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