SYNTHESIS AND STRUCTURE OF THE ONE-DIMENSIONAL TELLURIDE CS4ZR3TE16

The compound Cs4Zr3Te16 has been synthesized at 900-degrees-C through the reaction of Zr with a Cs2Te3/Te melt as a reactive flux. The compound crystallizes in the space group C2h5-P2(1)/n of the monoclinic system with four formula units in a cell of dimensions a = 12.012(3) angstrom, b = 18.999(7) angstrom, c = 15.264(5) angstrom, beta = 101.71(2)degrees, and V = 3411(2) angstrom3 (T = 113 K). The structure Of Cs4Zr3Te16 has been determined from single-crystal X-ray data. The structure comprises infinite, one-dimensional chains of Zr-centered polyhedra that extend along [100] and are separated from each other by Cs+ cations. Each Zr atom is eight-coordinate. There are four unambiguous Te-Te single bonds in the range 2.754(1)-2.768(1) angstrom and six more Te-Te interactions in the range 2.930(1)-2.966(1) angstrom. Because of the wide range of Te-Te interactions, simple formalisms do not describe the bonding in the chain. The compound shows weak semiconducting behavior along the Zr/Te chains.