DOE OSTI2020
Mg2Si crystallizes in the triclinic P1 space group. The structure is three-dimensional. there are eight inequivalent Mg2+ sites. In the first Mg2+ site, Mg2+ is bonded in a 4-coordinate geometry to four Si4- atoms. There are a spread of Mg–Si bond distances ranging from 2.66–2.91 Å. In the second Mg2+ site, Mg2+ is bonded in a 4-coordinate geometry to four Si4- atoms. There are a spread of Mg–Si bond distances ranging from 2.74–3.03 Å. In the third Mg2+ site, Mg2+ is bonded to four Si4- atoms to form a mixture of distorted edge and corner-sharing MgSi4 tetrahedra. There are a spread of Mg–Si bond distances ranging from 2.72–2.83 Å. In the fourth Mg2+ site, Mg2+ is bonded in a 4-coordinate geometry to four Si4- atoms. There are a spread of Mg–Si bond distances ranging from 2.83–3.13 Å. In the fifth Mg2+ site, Mg2+ is bonded in a distorted water-like geometry to three Si4- atoms. There are a spread of Mg–Si bond distances ranging from 2.77–3.21 Å. In the sixth Mg2+ site, Mg2+ is bonded in a 3-coordinate geometry to three Si4- atoms. There are a spread of Mg–Si bond distances ranging from 2.86–3.05 Å. In the seventh Mg2+ site, Mg2+ is bonded in a distorted T-shaped geometry to three Si4- atoms. There are a spread of Mg–Si bond distances ranging from 2.64–3.03 Å. In the eighth Mg2+ site, Mg2+ is bonded to four Si4- atoms to form a mixture of distorted edge and corner-sharing MgSi4 trigonal pyramids. There are a spread of Mg–Si bond distances ranging from 2.74–2.97 Å. There are four inequivalent Si4- sites. In the first Si4- site, Si4- is bonded in a 9-coordinate geometry to eight Mg2+ and one Si4- atom. The Si–Si bond length is 2.43 Å. In the second Si4- site, Si4- is bonded in a 9-coordinate geometry to seven Mg2+ and two Si4- atoms. The Si–Si bond length is 2.51 Å. In the third Si4- site, Si4- is bonded in a 9-coordinate geometry to eight Mg2+ and one Si4- atom. The Si–Si bond length is 2.42 Å. In the fourth Si4- site, Si4- is bonded in a 8-coordinate geometry to six Mg2+ and two Si4- atoms.