ZnTe
ZnTe has a DFT band gap of 0.21–1.45 eV across 94 reported structures in 18 space groups; its reference structure is cubic (F-43m (No. 216)). Cross-validated across 3 computational databases.
At a glance
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for ZnTe, 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.
0.21–1.45 eV
Range across DFT structures · ground state: wide 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.
94
3 databases, 18 space groups
Validation
Cross-Source DFT Agreement
How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of ZnTe. 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 ZnTe, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | 1.20 | 0.0000 | -0.473 | — |
| F-43m (No. 216) | cubic | 1.08 | 0.0000 | -2.886 | 5.62 |
| F-43m (No. 216) | cubic | 0.98 | 0.0000 | -0.469 | — |
| — | — | 1.27 | 0.0031 | -0.470 | — |
| — | — | 1.45 | 0.0035 | -0.469 | — |
| P31 (No. 144) | trigonal | 1.07 | 0.0037 | -2.882 | 5.42 |
| P63mc (No. 186) | hexagonal | 1.10 | 0.0053 | -2.880 | 5.61 |
| — | — | 1.32 | 0.0075 | -0.466 | — |
| F-43m (No. 216) | cubic | 1.06 | 0.0094 | -0.459 | — |
| F-43m (No. 216) | cubic | 1.06 | 0.0099 | -0.459 | — |
| P63mc (No. 186) | hexagonal | 1.08 | 0.0172 | -0.452 | — |
| P6422 (No. 181) | hexagonal | 0.22 | 0.1282 | -0.341 | — |
Synthesis
Synthesis Routes
Literature-extracted synthesis procedures targeting ZnTe.
Solid State
Procedure available · ceder_solid_state
Intellectual Property
Patent Landscape
2 patents reference ZnTe or close compositional variants.
| Patent | Title | Assignee | Granted |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12408469 | Optimizing cadmium (Cd) alloy solar cells with sputtered copper-doped zinc telluride (ZnTe:Cu) back contacts i | — | — |
| 8637082 | Methods for preparation of ZnTe nanocrystals | — | — |
Reference
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about ZnTe, answered from cross-validated data.
What is the band gap of ZnTe?
ZnTe has a DFT-computed band gap of 0.21–1.45 eV across 94 reported structures. Standard DFT underestimates band gaps, so the measured gap is typically larger.
More questions
Is ZnTe a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
DFT predicts a band gap of up to 1.45 eV (a semiconductor). Measured gaps are typically larger.
Is ZnTe thermodynamically stable?
Yes — ZnTe sits on the convex hull (energy above hull 0 eV/atom), i.e. stable.
What is the crystal structure of ZnTe?
The reference structure of ZnTe is cubic symmetry, space group F-43m (No. 216).
What is the density of ZnTe?
The computed density of the ground-state structure of ZnTe is 5.62 g/cm³.
How many polymorphs of ZnTe are known?
94 structures of ZnTe are reported across 3 databases, spanning 18 distinct space groups.
How is ZnTe synthesized?
Literature-reported routes for ZnTe include solid state.
What elements does ZnTe contain?
ZnTe contains Te and Zn (2 elements).
Where does the data for ZnTe come from?
ZnTe data is cross-referenced from oqmd, materials_project, jarvis.
Explore
Related Compounds
Other II-VI Semiconductors 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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