phosphide

In chemistry, a phosphide is a compound of phosphorus with a less electronegative element or elements. Binary compounds are formed with the majority of less electronegative elements with the exception of Hg, Pb, Sb, Bi, Te, Po.^[1] Typically there are a range of stoichiometries with each element; for example, potassium has nine phosphides: (K₃P, K₄P₃, K₅P₄, KP, K₄P₆ K₃P₇, K₃P₁₁, KP_10.3, KP₁₅) and nickel has eight,( Ni₃P, Ni₅P₂, Ni₁₂P₅, NiP₂, Ni₅P₄, NiP, NiP₂, NiP₃).^[1]

Classification is difficult,^[2]. On structural and reactivity grounds they can be broadly classified as^[1]:

• principally ionic with P³⁻ ions. these are the group 1 (M₃P, e.g., Na₃P) and group 2 metal (M₃P₂ e.g. Ca₃P₂)
• polyphosphides with, for example, dumbbell P₂⁴⁻ ions; cluster ion, P₁₁³⁻; polymeric chain anions (e.g., (the helical (P⁻)_n and complex sheet or 3-D anions.
• compounds with individual P atoms in a metal lattice that can be semiconducting (e.g., GaP) through to metallic in conduction, e.g., TaP ^[3]

Two polyphosphide ions P₃⁴⁻ found in K₄P₃, and P₄⁵⁻, found in in K₅P₄ are radical anions with an odd number of valence electrons making both compounds paramagnetic.^[1]

Examples

See also Phosphides

• Aluminium phosphide (AlP)
• Indium phosphide (InP)
• Calcium phosphide (Ca₃P₂)
• Copper phosphide (Cu₃P)
• Magnesium phosphide (Mg₃P₂)

Natural examples

Schreibersite (Fe,Ni)₃P is a common mineral in some meteorites. ^[4][5]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} H.G. Von Schnering, W. Hönle Phosphides - Solid state chemistry Encyclopedia of Inorganic Chemistry Ed. R. Bruce King (1994) John wiley & Sons ISBN 0 471 93620 0
2. ^ Greenwood, Norman N.; Earnshaw, A. (1997), Chemistry of the Elements (2nd ed.), Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann, ISBN 0-7506-3365-4 
3. ^ Chemical vapour deposition of group Vb metal phosphide thin films C. S. Blackman, C. J. Carmalt, S. A. O'Neill, I. P. Parkin, K. C. Molloy and L. Apostolico J. Mater. Chem., 2003, 13, 1930 - 1935, doi:10.1039/b304084b
4. ^ Mindat
5. ^ Handbook of Mineralogy

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