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Geosciences LibreTexts

10: Crystal Morphology and Symmetry

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10.1.png
Figure 10.1: Spectacular blue barite crystals up to 50 mm tall. From the Huanuco Department, Peru.

KEY CONCEPTS

  • The external symmetry of a crystal is the geometrical relationship between its faces and edges.
  • Crystal symmetry is a reflection of internal atomic arrangement and symmetry.
  • If a crystal has symmetry, the symmetry is common to all of its properties.
  • By studying crystal symmetry, we can make inferences about internal atomic order.
  • Crystals may have any of an infinite number of shapes, but the number of possible symmetries is limited.
  • Crystal symmetry is the basis for dividing crystals into different groups and classes.


This page titled 10: Crystal Morphology and Symmetry is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Dexter Perkins via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform.

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