Silicon sulfide

Silicon sulfide refers to the chemical compound with the formula SiS2. This material is polymeric and adopts a structure quite different from the corresponding silicon dioxide polymorphs. The material consists of chains of edge-shared tetrahedra, Si(&mu;-S)2Si(&mu;S)2 etc. The Si---Si distances at 214 picometers are shorter than conventional Si-Si single bonds.

The material is formed by heating silicon and sulfur or by the exchange reaction between SiO2 and Al2S3. Like all silicon sulfur-compounds, SiS2 hydrolyzes readily to release H2S and form hydrated silica gel.