LiAlO2

Lithium aluminate · gamma-LiAlO2, lithium meta-aluminate

Lithium aluminate is a stable, insulating ceramic material primarily utilized as a specialized substrate for semiconductor manufacturing and high-temperature applications.

Crystal structure of LiAlO2 (trigonal, R-3m (No. 166))
Ground-state structure · Materials Project
Overview

About Lithium aluminate

Lithium aluminate is a robust, thermodynamically stable oxide that functions as a wide-band-gap insulator. Its structural integrity and chemical inertness make it a highly reliable material for demanding high-temperature environments and specialized industrial processes.

Beyond its fundamental material properties, this compound is widely recognized for its utility in the fabrication of thin-film semiconductors. Its ability to serve as a stable substrate allows for the precise deposition of complex electronic materials, solidifying its role in advanced materials engineering.

At a glance

Key Properties

Cross-validated computational properties for Lithium aluminate, aggregated across 2 databases.

Band Gap

4.59–6.12 eV
Range across DFT structures

Energy Above Hull

0.000 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources

Stability

On hull (stable)
1 DFT source

Structures

5
2 databases, 3 space groups
Crystallography

Reported Structures

Lowest-energy structures reported for LiAlO2, ranked by energy above hull.

Space GroupCrystal SystemBand Gap (eV)E above hull (eV/atom)E/atom (eV)Density (g/cm³)
R-3m (No. 166)trigonal6.120.0000-6.9853.44
P41212 (No. 92)tetragonal4.590.0141-6.9702.64
P-4m2 (No. 115)tetragonal4.770.1028-6.8823.41
P41212 (No. 92)
R-3m (No. 166)
Uses

Applications

Where Lithium aluminate is used.

Semiconductor substrate for gallium nitride growthElectrolyte support in molten carbonate fuel cellsTritium breeding material in nuclear fusion reactors
Reference

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Lithium aluminate, answered from cross-validated data.

What is LiAlO2?

Lithium aluminate is a stable, insulating ceramic material primarily utilized as a specialized substrate for semiconductor manufacturing and high-temperature applications.

More questions
What is LiAlO2 used for?
Lithium aluminate (LiAlO2) is used in semiconductor substrate for gallium nitride growth, electrolyte support in molten carbonate fuel cells, and tritium breeding material in nuclear fusion reactors.
What is the band gap of LiAlO2?
Lithium aluminate (LiAlO2) has a DFT-computed band gap of 4.59–6.12 eV across 5 reported structures.
Is LiAlO2 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
With a wide band gap up to 6.12 eV it is an insulator / wide-band-gap material.
Is LiAlO2 thermodynamically stable?
Yes — Lithium aluminate (LiAlO2) sits on the convex hull (energy above hull 0 eV/atom), i.e. on hull (stable).
What is the crystal structure of LiAlO2?
The lowest-energy reported polymorph of Lithium aluminate (LiAlO2) is trigonal symmetry, space group R-3m (No. 166).
What is the density of LiAlO2?
The computed density of the ground-state structure of Lithium aluminate (LiAlO2) is 3.44 g/cm³.
How many polymorphs of LiAlO2 are known?
5 structures of LiAlO2 are reported across 2 databases, spanning 3 distinct space groups.
What elements does LiAlO2 contain?
Lithium aluminate (LiAlO2) contains Al, Li, and O (3 elements).
Where does the data for LiAlO2 come from?
LiAlO2 data is cross-referenced from materials_project, jarvis.
Comparison

How It Compares

Within the layered lithium transition-metal oxides class.

Unlike the electrochemically active layered lithium transition-metal oxides such as LiCoO2 or LiNiO2, which are primarily utilized for their lithium-ion storage capabilities, LiAlO2 is electronically insulating and chemically passive. While its siblings are designed for energy density and charge transport, LiAlO2 serves as a structural foundation for thin-film growth, highlighting a distinct functional divergence within the broader lithium-based oxide family.

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Related Compounds

Other Layered Lithium Transition-Metal Oxides in the database.

Data sources & attribution
  • materials_project — Data from the Materials Project. Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013).
  • jarvis — Data from JARVIS (NIST). Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020).

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