Bismuth interatomic distance

Bismuthides. Many intermetaUic compounds of bismuth with alkafl metals and alkaline earth metals have the expected formulas M Bi and M Bi, respectively. These compounds ate not saltlike but have high coordination numbers, interatomic distances similar to those found in metals, and metallic electrical conductivities. They dissolve to some extent in molten salts (eg, NaCl—Nal) to form solutions that have been interpreted from cryoscopic data as containing some Bi . Both the alkafl and alkaline earth metals form another series of alloylike bismuth compounds that become superconducting at low temperatures (Table 1). The MBi compounds are particularly noteworthy as having extremely short bond distances between the alkafl metal atoms. 

The radii in the lowest row of the table were obtained by a number of approximate considerations. For instance, if we assume the bismuth radius to bear the same ratio to the interatomic distance in elementary bismuth as in the case of arsenic and antimony, we obtain (Bi) = 1.16— 1.47 A. A similar conclusion is reached from a study of NiSb and NiBi (with the nickel arsenide structure). Although the structures of the aurous halides have not been determined, it may be pointed out that if they are assumed to be tetrahedral (B3 or Bi) the interatomic distances in the chloride, bromide, and iodide calculated from the observed densities1) are 2.52, 2.66, and 2.75 A, to be compared with 2.19, 2.66, and 2.78 A, respectively, from pur table. 

Asl3 and Bils. Heyworth and Braekken4) in their studies of the hexagonal crystals Asls and Bils assigned to them structures in which each arsenic or bismuth atom is surrounded by six equidistant iodine atoms, the interatomic distances reported being As—I = 2.97 A and Bi—I = 3.09 A. As in the case of eulytite, we believe that the trivalent atoms are displaced towards three and away from three of these six atoms, until the smallest interatomic distances become As — 7 = 2.54 A and Bi — I = 2.84 A5). 

A chain-like polymeric self-organization, 194, is observed in Tr-cyclopentadienyl bismuth dichloride, C5H5BiCl2. Pseudorotational disorder results in a mixture of and bonding of the C5H5 ring to the metal atom. The chains are formed by double chloride bridging and the bismuth-chlorine interatomic distances differ [455]. 

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