Crystallography

Mr. Amir D. Patel

Assistant Professor
Mechanical Engineering Department
 Crystallography
• It is a study of crystal formation of solids.
• It is a branch of science in which internal
structure of crystals, their properties are
studied.
• Crystalline Material (Solid) consist of atoms
arranged in regular and orderly manner in 3D
pattern.
• Amorphous Material (Solid) in which there is
no definite pattern of arrangement of atoms.
 Atomic Arrangement

• Crystalline – periodic arrangement of atoms:

definite repetitive pattern
• Non-crystalline or Amorphous – random
arrangement of atoms.
 Important Terms
• The atoms arrange themselves in distinct patterns
in space called as space lattice.
• The Unit Cell is the smallest group of atoms
possessing the symmetry of a crystal.
• The layers of atoms along which atoms are
arranged is called as atomic or crystallographic
planes.
• Miller Indices is a system of notation fro
designating crystallographic planes and direction of
crystals.
 Important Terms
• Atomic Packing Factor is a ratio of the volume
of atoms per unit cell to total volume
occupied by unit cell.
• Coordination Number is the number of
nearest atoms directly surrounding a given
atoms in crystal.
 Unit Cell
• The space lattice points in a crystal are
occupied by atoms.
• The position of any atom in the 3D lattice can
be described by a vector r= ua + vb + wc, where
u, v and w are integers.
• The three unit vectors, a, b, c can define a cell
as shown by the shaded region.
• This cell is known as unit cell which when
repeated in the three dimensions generates the
crystal structure.
 Bravais Lattice
• The unit vectors a, b and c are called lattice
parameters. Based on their length equality or
inequality and their orientation (the angles
between them,α,β and γ) a total of 7 crystal
systems can be defined. With the centering
(face, base and body centering) added to
these, 14 kinds of 3D lattices, known as
Bravais (The Originator) lattices, can be
generated.
 Cubic
• a = b = c, α = β = γ = 90ᵒ

Simple Cubic

Body Centered
Cubic (BCC)

Face Centered Cubic (FCC)

 Tetragonal
• a = b ≠ c, α = β = γ = 90ᵒ

Simple Tetragonal

Body Centered Tetragonal (BCT)

 Orthorhombic
• a ≠ b ≠ c, α = β = γ = 90ᵒ
Simple Body Centered

Base Centered Face Centered

 Monoclinic
• a ≠ b ≠ c, α = γ = 90ᵒ ≠ β

Simple

Body Centered
 Hexagonal
• a = b ≠ c, α = β = 90ᵒ, γ = 120ᵒ
 Rhombohedral
• a = b = c, α = β = γ ≠ 90ᵒ
 Triclinic
• a ≠ b ≠ c, α ≠ β ≠ γ ≠ 90ᵒ
 Polymorphism & Allotropy
• The ability of a material to have more than one
structure is called as polymorphism.
• If change in structure is reversible, then
polymorphism is called as allotropy.
• E.g – Iron at Room temperature – BCC
When heated above 910 C – FCC
Further heating above 1400 C – BCC
Melts – 1539 C
These changes are reversed on cooling. Hence it is
a allotropic changes.