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Updated: May 3, 2026

Soft Lithographic Functionalization and Patterning Oxide-free Silicon and Germanium
Published on: December 16, 2011
A Sodium Germanosilicide with Unusual Network Topology
Julia-Maria Hübner1, Thomas B Shiell1, Piotr A Guńka2
1Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington, District of Columbia 20015, United States.
Abstract:
The germanosilicide Na4-GeSi16- (0.4 ≤ x ≤ 1.1, 4.7 ≤ y ≤ 9.3) was synthesized under high-pressure, high-temperature conditions. The novel guest-host compound comprises a unique tetrel framework with dual channels housing sodium and smaller, empty (Si,Ge)9 units. The arrangement represents a new structure type with an overall structural topology that is closely related to a hypothetical carbon allotrope. Topological analysis of the structure revealed that the guest environment space cannot be tiled with singular polyhedra as in cage compounds (e.g., clathrates). The analysis of natural tilings provides a convenient method to unambiguously compare related tetrel-rich structures and can help elucidate new possible structural arrangements of intermetallic compounds.
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