The Wurtzite Crystal (B4) Structure

Last modified 3 July 2001

You can now

• see the structure from several perspectives;
• examine the structure with an external viewer; or
• download the coordinates of the atoms in these pictures in XYZ format.

This is the hexagonal analog of the zincblende lattice, i.e. the stacking of the ZnS dimers is ABABAB...

Replacing both the Zn and S atoms by C (or Si) gives the hexagonal diamond structure.

The ``ideal'' structure, where the nearest-neighbor environment of each atom is the same as in zincblende, is achieved when we take c/a = (8/3)^1/2 and u = 3/8.

• Prototype: ZnS (Wurtzite)
• Pearson Symbol: hP4
• Strukturbericht Designation: B4
• Space Group: P6₃mc (Cartesian and lattice coordinate listings available)
• Number: 186
• Other Compounds with this Structure: ZnO, SiC, AlN, CiSe, BN, C(Hexagonal Diamond)
• Primitive Vectors:
  • A₁ = ½ a X - ½ 3^1/2 a Y
  • A₂ = ½ a X + ½ 3^1/2 a Y
  • A₃ = c Z
• Basis Vectors:
  • B₁ = 1/3 A₁ + 2/3 A₂ = ½ a X + ½ 3^-1/2 a Y (Zn)
  • B₂ = 2/3 A₁ + 1/3 A₂ + ½ A₃ = ½ a X - ½ 3^-1/2 Y + ½ c Z (Zn)
  • B₃ = 1/3 A₁ + 2/3 A₂ + u A₃ = ½ a X + ½ 3^-1/2 a Y + u c Z (S)
  • B₄ = 2/3 A₁ + 1/3 A₂ + (½ + u) A₃ = ½ a X - ½ 3^-1/2 a Y + (½ + u) c Z (S)

See these vectors in a better notation.

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