chemistry

Indium trihydride

Indium trihydride is a chemistry topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Indium trihydride rather than just read about it. In short: Indium trihydride is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula (InH3). It has been observed in matrix isolation and laser ablation experiments.

Key takeaways

Indium trihydride belongs to chemistry; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Indium trihydride to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Indium trihydride from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Indium trihydride is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula (InH3). It has been observed in matrix isolation and laser ablation experiments. Gas phase stability has been predicted. The infrared spectrum was obtained in the gas phase by laser ablation of indium in presence of hydrogen gas. InH3 is of no practical importance.

Chemical properties Solid InH3 is a three-dimensional network polymeric structure, where In atoms are connected by In-H-In bridging bonds, is suggested to account for the growth of broad infrared bands when samples of InH3 and InD3 produced on a solid hydrogen matrix are warmed. Such a structure is known for solid AlH3. When heated above −90 °C, indium trihydride decomposes to produce indium–hydrogen alloy and elemental hydrogen. As of 2013, the only known method of synthesising indium trihydride is the autopolymerisation of indane below −90 °C.

Other indium hydrides

Several compounds with In-H bonds have been reported. Examples of complexes with two hydride ligands replaced by other ligands are (K+)3[K((CH3)2SiO)7]+([InH(CH2C(CH3)3)3]−)4 and HIn(−C6H4−ortho-CH2N(CH3)2)2. Although InH3 is labile, adducts are known with the stoichiometry InH3Ln (n = 1 or 2). 1:1 amine adducts are made by the reaction of Li+[InH4]− (lithium tetrahydridoindate(III)) with a trialkylammonium salt. The trimethylamine complex is only stable below −30 °C or in dilute solution. The 1:1 and 1:2 complexes with tricyclohexylphosphine (PCy3) have been characterised crystallographically. The average In-H bond length is 168 pm. Indium hydride is also known to form adducts with NHCs.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Indium trihydride

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Indium trihydride claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In chemistry, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Indium trihydride before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Indium trihydride ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Indium trihydride

In research: Indium trihydride appears in chemistry research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Indium trihydride in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Indium trihydride is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Indium compounds, Metal hydrides, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Indium trihydride outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Indium trihydride in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Indium trihydride means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Indium trihydride out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Indium trihydride in simple terms?

Indium trihydride is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula (InH3). It has been observed in matrix isolation and laser ablation experiments.

Why does Indium trihydride matter?

Because it connects several chemistry ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Indium trihydride?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Indium trihydride.