LaAlO3
Lanthanum aluminate · LAO
LaAlO3 is a stable, insulating oxide widely utilized as a structural substrate for the development of advanced thin-film electronic devices.

About Lanthanum aluminate
Lanthanum aluminate is a thermodynamically stable oxide that serves as a cornerstone material in materials science, particularly for its role as a high-quality substrate for epitaxial growth. Its wide-gap insulating nature makes it an ideal platform for studying interface phenomena and complex oxide heterostructures.
Beyond its utility in thin-film deposition, this compound is highly regarded for its structural compatibility with various perovskite-based materials. It remains a heavily investigated subject in condensed matter physics due to the unique electronic properties that emerge when it is integrated into layered oxide architectures.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Lanthanum aluminate, 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.
Reported Structures
Lowest-energy structures reported for LaAlO3, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Imma (No. 74) | orthorhombic | 3.71 | 0.0000 | -8.428 | 6.53 |
| R-3c (No. 167) | trigonal | 4.02 | 0.0003 | -8.427 | 6.54 |
| I4/mcm (No. 140) | tetragonal | 3.52 | 0.0004 | -8.427 | 6.54 |
| Pm-3m (No. 221) | cubic | 3.49 | 0.0031 | -8.425 | 6.56 |
| P-1 (No. 2) | triclinic | 4.44 | 0.0312 | -8.396 | 4.56 |
| P21/c (No. 14) | monoclinic | 4.25 | 0.0358 | -8.392 | 4.52 |
| P-1 (No. 2) | triclinic | 4.17 | 0.0428 | -8.385 | 4.99 |
| Cmcm (No. 63) | orthorhombic | 4.61 | 0.0532 | -8.374 | 4.81 |
| P21/c (No. 14) | monoclinic | 4.48 | 0.0571 | -8.370 | 4.99 |
| P-1 (No. 2) | triclinic | 4.27 | 0.0826 | -8.345 | 5.05 |
| P21/c (No. 14) | monoclinic | 4.47 | 0.0932 | -8.334 | 5.13 |
| P1 (No. 1) | triclinic | 3.58 | 0.2283 | -8.199 | 5.74 |
Applications
Where Lanthanum aluminate is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Lanthanum aluminate, answered from cross-validated data.
What is LaAlO3?
LaAlO3 is a stable, insulating oxide widely utilized as a structural substrate for the development of advanced thin-film electronic devices.
What is LaAlO3 used for?
What is the band gap of LaAlO3?
Is LaAlO3 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is LaAlO3 thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of LaAlO3?
What is the density of LaAlO3?
How many polymorphs of LaAlO3 are known?
What elements does LaAlO3 contain?
Where does the data for LaAlO3 come from?
How It Compares
Within the spinel oxide catalysts class.
Unlike more reactive transition metal oxides in its class such as CuO or NiO, LaAlO3 is characterized by its exceptional chemical stability and insulating behavior. While materials like LaMnO3 or LaNiO3 exhibit complex magnetic or metallic properties, LaAlO3 acts as a robust, electronically inert structural template that facilitates the growth of these more functional, active members.
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).
- mpaloe — Data from mpaloe.
- jarvis — Data from JARVIS (NIST). Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020).
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