Crystal structure is the ordered, repeating three-dimensional arrangement of atoms, ions or molecules that defines a crystalline solid, described by a unit cell and the symmetry with which it repeats through space. X-ray diffraction, developed by Max von Laue and William Henry and William Lawrence Bragg from 1912, made it possible to determine a real material's crystal structure directly, and materials science relies on that structure, together with the defects that interrupt it, to explain a material's mechanical, electrical and optical properties.
Facts
Element Facts
Discovery YearSourced to the subject's own accountVon Laue's 1912 observation of X-ray diffraction confirmed the method; the Braggs developed Bragg's law determining crystal structure the same year, continuing into 1913. Discovered BySourced to the subject's own accountMax von Laue; William Henry Bragg and William Lawrence Bragg 1 Connections
Associated With
Bragg and his father William Henry Bragg founded X-ray crystallography in 1912 to 1913, developing Bragg's law as the method for determining crystal structure from diffraction patterns.
Belongs To
Source Crystal Structure (Wikipedia)
Studied In
Source Condensed Matter Physics (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases
Informed
Also in Technology and Engineering Atlas: which this subject informed.
Sources
1. Crystal Structure (Wikipedia)
Condensed Matter Physics (Wikipedia)
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.