The Basics Of Crystallography And Diffraction. 2nd Edition

The Basics of Crystallography and Diffraction provides a clear and comprehensive introduction to the topics of crystallography and diffraction for undergraduate and beginning graduate students and lecturers in physics, chemistry, materials and earth sciences. It goes beyond the level given in more general science books. The book shows how crystal structures may be built up from simple ideas of atomic packing and co-ordination, and develops the concepts of crystal symmetry, point and space groups by way of two-dimensional examples of patterns and tilings. Furthermore, the concept of the reciprocal lattice is explained in simple terms and its importance in the understanding of light, X-ray and electron diffraction shown. The book also offers practical examples of the applications of these techniques, and describes the importance of diffraction in the performance of optical instruments. For this second edition, the existing material has been thoroughly updated, additional figures and exercises have been supplied and two new chapters added (Chapter eleven - Electron diffraction and its applications and Chapter twelve - The stereographic projection and its uses).