Reinvestigation of Na 3 P based on single-crystal data

The structure of tris­odium phosphide, Na3P, known from X-ray powder diffraction data, has been refined based on single-crystal data. The compound crystallizes in the hexa­gonal A3B (A = alkali metal and B = group 15 element) structure type and is isotypic with the homologous potassium phase. The framework is built of Na+ and P3− ions arranged in two kinds of layers perpendicular to the c axis. Two of the Na atoms and the P atom reside at positions of \overline{6}m2 (2b), 3m (4f) and \overline{6}m2 (2c) site symmetry, respectively.