YbCuZnP2 crystallizes in the trigonal P3m1 space group. Yb(1) is bonded to three equivalent P(1) and three equivalent P(2) atoms to form distorted YbP6 octahedra that share corners with six equivalent Cu(1)P4 tetrahedra, corners with six equivalent Zn(1)P4 tetrahedra, edges with six equivalent Yb(1)P6 octahedra, edges with three equivalent Cu(1)P4 tetrahedra, and edges with three equivalent Zn(1)P4 tetrahedra. Cu(1) is bonded to one P(1) and three equivalent P(2) atoms to form distorted CuP4 tetrahedra that share corners with six equivalent Yb(1)P6 octahedra, corners with six equivalent Cu(1)P4 tetrahedra, edges with three equivalent Yb(1)P6 octahedra, and edges with three equivalent Zn(1)P4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles range from 22-52°. Zn(1) is bonded to one P(2) and three equivalent P(1) atoms to form distorted ZnP4 tetrahedra that share corners with six equivalent Yb(1)P6 octahedra, corners with six equivalent Zn(1)P4 tetrahedra, edges with three equivalent Yb(1)P6 octahedra, and edges with three equivalent Cu(1)P4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles range from 20-52°. There are two inequivalent P sites. In the first P site, P(1) is bonded in a 7-coordinate geometry to three equivalent Yb(1), one Cu(1), and three equivalent Zn(1) atoms. In the second P site, P(2) is bonded to three equivalent Yb(1), three equivalent Cu(1), and one Zn(1) atom to form distorted edge-sharing PYb3ZnCu3 pentagonal bipyramids.
YbCuZnP2 crystallizes in the trigonal P3m1 space group. Yb(1) is bonded to three equivalent P(1) and three equivalent P(2) atoms to form distorted YbP6 octahedra that share corners with six equivalent Cu(1)P4 tetrahedra, corners with six equivalent Zn(1)P4 tetrahedra, edges with six equivalent Yb(1)P6 octahedra, edges with three equivalent Cu(1)P4 tetrahedra, and edges with three equivalent Zn(1)P4 tetrahedra. All Yb(1)-P(1) bond lengths are 2.90 Å. All Yb(1)-P(2) bond lengths are 2.89 Å. Cu(1) is bonded to one P(1) and three equivalent P(2) atoms to form distorted CuP4 tetrahedra that share corners with six equivalent Yb(1)P6 octahedra, corners with six equivalent Cu(1)P4 tetrahedra, edges with three equivalent Yb(1)P6 octahedra, and edges with three equivalent Zn(1)P4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles range from 22-52°. The Cu(1)-P(1) bond length is 2.53 Å. All Cu(1)-P(2) bond lengths are 2.37 Å. Zn(1) is bonded to one P(2) and three equivalent P(1) atoms to form distorted ZnP4 tetrahedra that share corners with six equivalent Yb(1)P6 octahedra, corners with six equivalent Zn(1)P4 tetrahedra, edges with three equivalent Yb(1)P6 octahedra, and edges with three equivalent Cu(1)P4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles range from 20-52°. The Zn(1)-P(2) bond length is 2.43 Å. All Zn(1)-P(1) bond lengths are 2.40 Å. There are two inequivalent P sites. In the first P site, P(1) is bonded in a 7-coordinate geometry to three equivalent Yb(1), one Cu(1), and three equivalent Zn(1) atoms. In the second P site, P(2) is bonded to three equivalent Yb(1), three equivalent Cu(1), and one Zn(1) atom to form distorted edge-sharing PYb3ZnCu3 pentagonal bipyramids.