Monoclinic Cu2Se3Sn

A previously unknown modification of dicopper(I) triselenostannate(IV), Cu2Se3Sn, has been obtained from the Cu2Se-SnSe2 quasi-binary system and investigated using X-ray single-crystal diffraction. The Se atoms are stacked in a closest-packed arrangement with the layers in the sequence ABC. The Cu atoms occupy one-third of the tetrahedral interstices, whereas the Sn atoms are located in one-sixth of the tetrahedral interstices. All the atoms occupy general positions. The structure possesses pseudo-inversion symmetry. The Cu2Se3Sn structure investigated in this paper (96 atoms per unit cell, ordered distribution of Cu and Sn over 12 cation positions) is a superstructure of the reported cubic (eight atoms per unit cell, random distribution of Cu and Sn over one cation position) and monoclinic (24 atoms per unit cell, ordered distribution of Cu and Sn over three cation positions) modifications. (orig.)