 Properties of individual atom are determined by its atomic

structure.

 In this respect valence electrons play an important role in

producing most of its chemical, electrical and optical
properties.

 These atoms combine together to form crystal.

 The arrangement of atoms in the interior of a crystal is

called crystal structure.

 This structure is determined by grouping of the atoms,

bonding between them, type of the space lattice formed,
parameters of the unit cell and the number and position
per unit cell.
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 Depending upon the type of grouping of atoms,
materials can be classified into three categories,
namely:
› molecular structure,
› crystal structures and
› amorphous structures

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 Molecular structures
 Molecular structures are formed when a limited number
of atoms come together and get strongly bonded to
one another.

 The resulting groups are called molecules, for example,

H2O, CO2, CCl4, O2, N2, etc.

 Within these molecules, the atoms are held together by

strong attractive forces that usually have covalent or
ionic bonds.

 Similar group of atoms have relatively weak bonds

among themselves.

 The groups have no net charge.

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 Crystal structures
 Atomic arrangements which have a repetitive pattern
in all the three dimensions of space are called crystal
structures or crystals.
 In such structures, a fundamental unit of the
arrangement repeats itself at regular intervals in three
dimensions, throughout the interior of the crystal.

 Amorphous structures
 Amorphous structures are formed when atoms do not
have the long range repetitive pattern of arrangement
and the pattern breaks at different places.
 Common examples of this group are glasses and
polymers.

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 A crystalline substate is one which is made of crystals or parts of
crystals.

 In a crystal the atoms are arranged in a periodic and regular

geometric pattern in space.

 The arrangement of atoms in a crystal can be described with

respect to a three dimensional net of straight lines, called a space
lattice.

 The intersection of the lines, are points of a space lattice.

 These points may be occupied by the atoms in crystals or they may

be points which several atoms are clustered.

 The important characteristic of a space lattice is that every point has

identical surroundings.

 The number of atoms which constitute a crystal is very large and

even the smallest crystals are composed of billions of atoms.

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 The grouping of atoms whose repetition will produce the crystal is called the
unit cell.

 A unit cell is a building block of the crystal.

 The crystal consists of unit cells stacked tightly together, each identical in size,
shape and orientation with all others.

 Shape and size of the unit cell is given by six lattice parameters a. b, c, ∞,β and
γ as shown in I the following figure. The length of the edge of the unit cell is
known as the lattice constant.

 Depending upon the relation between these parameters, the unit cells can be
divided into seven groups, known as crystal systems.
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 Rules for Miller Indices:
 Determine the intercepts of the face along the crystallographic axes, in terms of unit cell
dimensions.
 Take the reciprocals
 Clear fractions
 Reduce to lowest terms

 For example, if the x-, y-, and z- intercepts are 2, 1, and 3, the Miller indices are calculated
as:Take reciprocals: 1/2, 1/1, 1/3
 Clear fractions (multiply by 6): 3, 6, 2
 Reduce to lowest terms (already there)
 Thus, the Miller indices are 3,6,2.
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 If a plane is parallel to an axis, its intercept is at infinity and its Miller index is zero.
 A generc Miller index is denoted by (hkl).
 The set of symmetrically equivalent planes is
designated {hkl}.
 The direction normal to the plane is often
designated [hkl].
 The set of equivalent directions is <hkl> .
 Negative direction denoted by line above miller
index:

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 If a Miller index is zero, the plane is parallel to that axis.

 The smaller a Miller index, the more nearly parallel the plane is
to the axis.

 The larger a Miller index, the more nearly perpendicular a

plane is to that axis.

 Multiplying or dividing a Miller index by a constant has no

effect on the orientation of the plane

 Miller indices are almost always small.

 Using reciprocals spares us the complication of infinite

intercepts.

 Formulas involving Miller indices are very similar to related

formulas from analytical geometry.

http://chemistry.bd.psu.edu/jircitano/Miller.html 1 March 2020 14

 Thanks

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