Tin chalcogenides – a group of multi utility inorganic materials

Abstract Remarkable and unique properties of main group chalcogenides have been exploited for diverse applications owing to their semiconducting properties with a wide range of band gaps and high absorption coefficients. The scope and horizon of their utility is further expanded by modulating the size to nanometre dimensions as well as the number of layers in 2-D layered materials. A number of these materials, like CdTe, CuInSe 2 , HgCdTe, In 2 S 3 , PbTe, Bi 2 Te 3 , etc., are used in several commercial devices, but either their scarce availability in the earth crust or toxicity limits their large-scale utilization. Tin forms several binary, ternary and quaternary chalcogenides which show desirable semiconducting properties. Different compositions and phases exhibit distinct conductivity (p/n-type) and energy band gaps. The band gap energy varies greatly from narrow-band (∼0.2 eV) to wide-band (>2.0 eV) depending on the tin chalcogenide. Benign nature and cost effectiveness of tin makes it the most suitable candidate among main group materials. With the flexible tuning of physical and chemical properties, accomplished through different strategies, versatile applications of tin chalcogenides can be realized. This review highlights recent advances on different facets of tin chalcogenide chemistry with their applications in diverse areas.