Tin(IV) sulfide

Tin sulfide is a compound with the formula. A brown, water-insoluble solid, it is a semiconductor with band gap 2.2 eV. It occurs naturally as the rare mineral berndtite.

Synthesis and structure

The compound precipitates as a brown solid upon the addition of to solutions containing tin species. This reaction is reversed at low pH. It can also be prepared by heating finely ground Sn with excess sulfur.
The compound crystallizes in the cadmium iodide motif, with the Sn situated in "octahedral holes' defined by six sulfide centers.
The material reacts with sulfide salts to give a series of thiostannates with the formula. A simplified equation for this depolymerization reaction is:

Crystalline has a bronze color and is used in decorative coating where it is known as mosaic gold.
Tin sulfide has various uses in electrochemistry. It serves as an anode in prototypes of lithium-ion batteries. Intercalation with organometallic reagents is reversible.
It has also been evaluated as a component of supercapacitors, which could be used for energy storage.