Magnesium sulfide

Magnesium sulfide (MgS) is an ionic compound composed of magnesium and sulfur. It occurs naturally as the rare mineral niningerite and can also be made synthetically.

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Magnesium: Magnesium is a chemical element with atomic number 12, commonly forming Mg²⁺ ions. Magnesium supplies the positively charged ions in MgS.
Magnesium oxide: Magnesium oxide is an ionic compound of magnesium and oxygen with formula MgO. Replacing sulfur with oxygen yields a related magnesium compound with different properties.
Niningerite: Niningerite is a rare magnesium sulfide mineral found chiefly in enstatite meteorites. It is the naturally occurring mineral form of MgS.
Semiconductor: A semiconductor is a material whose electrical conductivity lies between that of a conductor and an insulator and can be controlled. MgS is studied as a wide-band-gap semiconductor material.
Sulfur: Sulfur is a chemical element with atomic number 16, commonly forming sulfide ions in ionic compounds. Sulfur forms the negatively charged component of MgS.
Sulfide: A sulfide is a compound or ion containing sulfur in its reduced, negatively charged form. MgS belongs to the broad family of metal sulfides.
Enstatite chondrite: An enstatite chondrite is a meteorite rich in the magnesium silicate mineral enstatite and formed under strongly reducing conditions. These meteorites host many known occurrences of niningerite.
Band gap: A band gap is the energy range separating the valence and conduction bands in a solid. Its wide band gap shapes the optical and electronic behavior investigated for MgS.
Ionic bonding: Ionic bonding is electrostatic attraction between oppositely charged ions. The attraction between Mg²⁺ and S²⁻ holds the compound together.
Rock salt structure: The rock salt structure is a cubic arrangement in which each ion is surrounded by six oppositely charged ions. Synthetic MgS commonly adopts this six-coordinate ionic structure.