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crystallography
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crystallography

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examples of well-shaped crystals
examples of well-shaped crystals
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Category: Science & Tech
Key People:
Sir Lawrence Bragg
Pierre Curie
Sir William Bragg
Sir Charles Frank
Ada Yonath
Related Topics:
metallography
optical crystallography
X-ray crystallography
Friedel’s law
metallographic etching
See all related content →
Fascinating facts about crystals
Fascinating facts about crystals
Discover five facts about crystals.
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crystallography, branch of science that deals with discerning the arrangement and bonding of atoms in crystalline solids and with the geometric structure of crystal lattices. Classically, the optical properties of crystals were of value in mineralogy and chemistry for the identification of substances. Modern crystallography is largely based on the analysis of the diffraction of X-rays by crystals acting as optical gratings. Using X-ray crystallography, chemists are able to determine the internal structures and bonding arrangements of minerals and molecules, including the structures of large complex molecules, such as proteins and DNA.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by John P. Rafferty.