This Second Edition provides solid state scientists, who are not necessarily experts in crystallography, with an understandable and comprehensive guide to the new International Tables for Crystallography. The basic ideas of symmetry, lattices, point groups, and space groups are explained in a clear and detailed manner. Notation is introduced in a step-by-step way so that the reader is supplied with the tools necessary to derive and apply space group information. Of particular interest in this second edition are the discussions of space groups application to such timely topics as high-temperature superconductors, phase transitions, semiconductor superlattices, incommensurate modulation, and icosahedral symmetry.

This book invites you on a systematic tour through the fascinating world of crystals and their symmetries. The reader will gain an understanding of the symmetry of external crystal forms (morphology) and become acquainted with all the symmetry elements needed to classify and describe crystal structures. The book explains the context in a very vivid, non-mathematical way and captivates with clear, high-quality illustrations. Online materials accompany the book; including 3D models the reader can explore on screen to aid in the spatial understanding of the structure of crystals. After reading the book, you will not only know what a space group is and how to read the International Tables for Crystallography, but will also be able to interpret crystallographic specifications in specialist publications. If questions remain, you also have the opportunity to ask the author on the book's website.

The book presents the basic information needed to understand and to organize the huge amount of known structures of crystalline solids. Its basis is crystallographic group theory (space group theory), with special emphasis on the relations between the symmetry properties of crystals.

This is the first book to provide a comprehensive treatment of theories and applications in the rapidly expanding field of the crystallography of modular materials. Molecules are the natural modules from which molecular crystalline structures are built. Most inorganic structures, however, are infinite arrays of atoms and some kinds of surrogate modules, e.g. co-ordination polyhedra, are usually used to describe them. In recent years the attention has been focused on complex modules as the basis for a systematic description of polytypes and homologous/polysomatic series (modular structures). This representation is applied to the modelling of unknown structures and understanding nanoscale defects and intergrowths in materials. The Order/Disorder (OD) theory is fundamental to developing a systematic theory of polytypism, dealing with those structures based on both ordered and disordered stacking of one or more layers. Twinning at both unit-cell and micro-scale, together with disorder, causes many problems, "demons", for computer-based methods of crystal structure determination. This book develops the theory of twinning with the inclusion of worked examples, converting the "demons" into useful indicators for unravelling crystal structure. In spite of the increasing use of the concepts of modular crystallography for characterising, understanding and tailoring technological crystalline materials, this is the first book to offer a unified treatment of the results, which are spread across many different journals and original papers published over the last twenty years.

This book provides a clear introduction to topics which are essential to students in a wide range of scientific disciplines but which are otherwise only covered in specialised and mathematically detailed texts. It shows how crystal structures may be built up from simple ideas of atomic packing and co-ordination, it develops the concepts of crystal symmetry, point and space groups by way of two dimensional examples of patterns and tilings, it explains the concept of the reciprocal lattice in simple terms and shows its importance in an understanding of light, X-ray and electron diffraction. Practical examples of the applications of these techniques are described and also the importance of diffraction in the performance of optical instruments. The book is also of value to the general reader since it shows, by biographical and historical references, how the subject has developed and thereby indicates some of the excitement of scientific discovery.

International Tables for Crystallography Volume G, Definition and exchange of crystallographic data, describes the standard data exchange and archival file format (the Crystallographic Information File, or CIF) used throughout crystallography. It provides in-depth information vital for small-molecule, inorganic and macromolecular crystallographers, mineralogists, chemists, materials scientists, solid-state physicists and others who wish to record or use the results of a single-crystal or powder diffraction experiment. The volume also provides the detailed data ontology necessary for programmers and database managers to design interoperable computer applications. The accompanying CD-ROM contains the CIF dictionaries in machine-readable form and a collection of libraries and utility programs. This volume is an essential guide and reference for programmers of crystallographic software, data managers handling crystal-structure information and practising crystallographers who need to use CIF.

This highly readable, popular textbook for upper undergraduates and graduates comprehensively covers the fundamentals of crystallography and symmetry, applying these concepts to a large range of materials. New to this edition are more streamlined coverage of crystallography, additional coverage of magnetic point group symmetry and updated material on extraterrestrial minerals and rocks. New exercises at the end of chapters, plus over 500 additional exercises available online, allow students to check their understanding of key concepts and put into practice what they have learnt. Over 400 illustrations within the text help students visualise crystal structures and more abstract mathematical objects, supporting more difficult topics like point group symmetries. Historical and biographical sections add colour and interest by giving an insight into those who have contributed significantly to the field. Supplementary online material includes password-protected solutions, over 100 crystal structure data files, and Powerpoints of figures from the book.