Optical and electrical properties of the wide gap, n-type semiconductors: ZnBi2O6 and MgBi2O6

Characterization of polycrystalline samples of the trirutile oxides ZnBi2O6 and MgBi2O6 reveals temperature independent conductivity (0.4 and 0.01 S cm–1), a negative Seebeck coefficient (–0.035 and –0.025 mV K–1), and an optical band gap that falls at the low energy end of visible region (1.7 and 1.8 eV), this combination of attributes, indicating that these compounds are degenerate n-type semiconductors, has not previously been observed in a Bi5+ oxide.