Synthesis and crystal structure of Zn2VO(PO4)2, a vanadyl(IV) orthophosphate containing a dimer of edge-sharing ZnO5 square pyramids

Reactions in the ZnO---VO₂---P₂O₅ system afford the new phase Zn₂VO(PO₄)₂, the structure of which was determined by the single-crystal X-ray diffraction method (I4cm, A = 8.9227(13), C = 9.039(3) Å, Z = 4, R = 0.026 for 228 unique reflections). The structure consists of infinite chains of corner-sharing VO₆ octahedra along the c-axis and finite chains of edge-sharing ZnO₅ and PO₄ polyhedra parallel to the 110 directions. The VO₆ octahedra are distorted such that alternately long and short V---O bonds along the axis of the infinite chain are formed. The Zn²⁺ ions exhibit a square pyramidal coordination.