Cs7In4Bi6: a zintl phase tailored from the PbO-type layers of the parent InBi compound

The compound Cs7In4Bi6 was produced by fusion of stoichiometric mixture of the pure elements. The structure was based on In-centered tetrahedra of bismuth sharing edges to form folded chains. The latter are connected through In-In bonds in a complicated three-dimensional network. The structure can be described as being carved out from the layered PbO-type structure of the parent group III-V compound of InBi. According to EHMO computations and magnetic measurements, Cs7In4Bi6 is a wide band-gap semiconductor.