Tm(CuS)3 crystallizes in the trigonal R-3 space group. Tm(1) is bonded to six equivalent S(1) atoms to form TmS6 octahedra that share corners with twelve equivalent Cu(1)S4 tetrahedra, edges with three equivalent Tm(1)S6 octahedra, and edges with six equivalent Cu(1)S4 tetrahedra. Cu(1) is bonded to four equivalent S(1) atoms to form CuS4 tetrahedra that share corners with four equivalent Tm(1)S6 octahedra, corners with six equivalent Cu(1)S4 tetrahedra, edges with two equivalent Tm(1)S6 octahedra, and edges with three equivalent Cu(1)S4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles range from 16-55°. S(1) is bonded to two equivalent Tm(1) and four equivalent Cu(1) atoms to form a mixture of distorted corner and edge-sharing STm2Cu4 octahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles range from 0-90°.
Tm(CuS)3 crystallizes in the trigonal R-3 space group. Tm(1) is bonded to six equivalent S(1) atoms to form TmS6 octahedra that share corners with twelve equivalent Cu(1)S4 tetrahedra, edges with three equivalent Tm(1)S6 octahedra, and edges with six equivalent Cu(1)S4 tetrahedra. All Tm(1)-S(1) bond lengths are 2.70 Å. Cu(1) is bonded to four equivalent S(1) atoms to form CuS4 tetrahedra that share corners with four equivalent Tm(1)S6 octahedra, corners with six equivalent Cu(1)S4 tetrahedra, edges with two equivalent Tm(1)S6 octahedra, and edges with three equivalent Cu(1)S4 tetrahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles range from 16-55°. There are a spread of Cu(1)-S(1) bond distances ranging from 2.30-2.40 Å. S(1) is bonded to two equivalent Tm(1) and four equivalent Cu(1) atoms to form a mixture of distorted corner and edge-sharing STm2Cu4 octahedra. The corner-sharing octahedral tilt angles range from 0-90°.