Thallium(I) iodide


Thallium iodide is a chemical compound with the formula. It is unusual in being one of the few water-insoluble metal iodides, along with AgI, CuI, SnI2, SnI4, PbI2 and HgI2.

Chemistry

TlI can be formed in aqueous solution by metathesis of any soluble thallium salt with iodide ion. It is also formed as a by-product in thallium-promoted iodination of phenols with thallium acetate.
Attempts to oxidise TlI to thallium iodide fail, since oxidation produces the thallium triiodide,.

Physical properties

The room temperature form of TlI is yellow and has an orthorhombic structure which can be considered to be a distorted NaCl structure. The distorted structure is believed to be caused by favourable thallium-thallium interactions, the closest Tl-Tl distance is 383 pm. At 175 °C the yellow form transforms to a red CsCl form. This phase transition is accompanied by about two orders of magnitude jump in electrical conductivity. The CsI structure can be stabilized down to room temperature by doping with other iodides such as RbI, CsI, KI, AgI, TlBr and TlCl. Thus, presence of impurities might be responsible for coexistence of the cubic and orthorombic phases at ambient conditions. Under high pressure, 160 kbar, becomes a metallic conductor. Nanometer-thin films grown on LiF, NaCl or KBr substrates exhibit the cubic rocksalt structure.

Applications

Thallium iodide is added to mercury arc lamps to improve their performance The light produced is mainly in the blue green part of the visible light spectrum least absorbed by water, so these have been used for underwater lighting. Thallium iodide is also used in trace amounts with NaI or CsI to produce scintillators used in radiation detectors.

Natural occurrence

Natural thallium iodide was only recently found, as a orthorhombic polymorph called nataliyamalikite. It is of a fumarolic origin.

Safety

Like all thallium compounds, thallium iodide is highly toxic.

Cited sources