YbLa5S8 crystallizes in the tetragonal I-4 space group. Yb(1) is bonded to four equivalent S(1) and four equivalent S(2) atoms to form distorted YbS8 hexagonal bipyramids that share corners with eight equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, edges with four equivalent La(2)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, and faces with eight equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids. There are two inequivalent La sites. In the first La site, La(1) is bonded to four equivalent S(1) and four equivalent S(2) atoms to form distorted LaS8 hexagonal bipyramids that share corners with two equivalent Yb(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, corners with two equivalent La(2)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, corners with four equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, edges with four equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, faces with two equivalent Yb(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, faces with two equivalent La(2)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, and faces with four equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids. In the second La site, La(2) is bonded to four equivalent S(1) and four equivalent S(2) atoms to form distorted LaS8 hexagonal bipyramids that share corners with eight equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, edges with four equivalent Yb(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, and faces with eight equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids. There are two inequivalent S sites. In the first S site, S(1) is bonded to one Yb(1), one La(2), and four equivalent La(1) atoms to form a mixture of distorted face, corner, and edge-sharing SLa5Yb octahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles range from 17-50°. In the second S site, S(2) is bonded to one Yb(1), one La(2), and four equivalent La(1) atoms to form a mixture of distorted face, corner, and edge-sharing SLa5Yb octahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles range from 18-50°.
YbLa5S8 crystallizes in the tetragonal I-4 space group. Yb(1) is bonded to four equivalent S(1) and four equivalent S(2) atoms to form distorted YbS8 hexagonal bipyramids that share corners with eight equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, edges with four equivalent La(2)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, and faces with eight equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids. All Yb(1)-S(1) bond lengths are 2.86 Å. All Yb(1)-S(2) bond lengths are 3.13 Å. There are two inequivalent La sites. In the first La site, La(1) is bonded to four equivalent S(1) and four equivalent S(2) atoms to form distorted LaS8 hexagonal bipyramids that share corners with two equivalent Yb(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, corners with two equivalent La(2)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, corners with four equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, edges with four equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, faces with two equivalent Yb(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, faces with two equivalent La(2)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, and faces with four equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids. There are a spread of La(1)-S(1) bond distances ranging from 2.92-3.20 Å. There are a spread of La(1)-S(2) bond distances ranging from 2.91-3.10 Å. In the second La site, La(2) is bonded to four equivalent S(1) and four equivalent S(2) atoms to form distorted LaS8 hexagonal bipyramids that share corners with eight equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, edges with four equivalent Yb(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids, and faces with eight equivalent La(1)S8 hexagonal bipyramids. All La(2)-S(1) bond lengths are 3.10 Å. All La(2)-S(2) bond lengths are 2.93 Å. There are two inequivalent S sites. In the first S site, S(1) is bonded to one Yb(1), one La(2), and four equivalent La(1) atoms to form a mixture of distorted face, corner, and edge-sharing SLa5Yb octahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles range from 17-50°. In the second S site, S(2) is bonded to one Yb(1), one La(2), and four equivalent La(1) atoms to form a mixture of distorted face, corner, and edge-sharing SLa5Yb octahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles range from 18-50°.