Wurtzite CoO

Cobalt oxide in the wurtzite modification has been prepared by a nonaqueous solution route and its structure determined using neutron and X-ray powder diffraction. SQUID magnetization measurements and low-temperature neutron diffraction do not show evidence for long range magnetic order, perhaps reflecting magnetic frustration intrinsic to the wurtzite structure type. Density functional calculations of the electronic structure of wurtzite CoO suggest that electron correlations must be explicitly considered in order to correctly describe this unusual material.