In
mineralogy and
crystallography, a crystal structure is a unique arrangement of atoms in a
crystal. A crystal structure is composed of a motif, a set of
atoms arranged in a particular way, and a lattice. Motifs are located upon the points of a
lattice, which is an array of points repeating periodically in three dimensions. The points can be thought of as forming identical tiny boxes, called unit cells, that fill the space of the lattice. The lengths of the edges of a unit cell and the angles between them are called the
lattice parameters. The
symmetry properties of the crystal are embodied in its
space group. A crystal's structure and symmetry play a role in determining many of its properties, such as
cleavage, electronic
band structure, and
optical properties.
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