Triclinic crystal system: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 15:48, 9 February 2025

A crystal system with three unequal axes all intersecting at oblique angles

Overview

The triclinic crystal system is one of the seven crystal systems in crystallography. It is characterized by having three axes of unequal length, all of which intersect at oblique angles. This means that none of the axes are perpendicular to each other, and the angles between them are not 90 degrees.

Characteristics

In the triclinic system, the unit cell is defined by three vectors of unequal length, denoted as a, b, and c. The angles between these vectors, denoted as _, _, and _, are all different and none of them are 90 degrees. This results in the least symmetrical of all the crystal systems.

Symmetry

The triclinic system has the lowest symmetry of all the crystal systems. It has only one point group: the identity group, which is denoted as 1, and the inversion group, denoted as \(\bar{1}\). This means that triclinic crystals have no rotational symmetry axes.

Examples

A common example of a mineral that crystallizes in the triclinic system is microcline, a type of feldspar. Microcline is often found in granite and is known for its distinctive grid-like twinning pattern.

Microcline, a mineral that crystallizes in the triclinic system

Related pages

References

Klein, Cornelis and Cornelius S. Hurlbut, Jr. (1985). Manual of Mineralogy (20th ed.). John Wiley & Sons.
"Triclinic crystal system." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, last visited October 2023.

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-The '''triclinic''' (or '''anorthic''') '''crystal system''' is one of the 7 crystal systems in crystallography. A crystal system is a geometric classification system used to describe the arrangement of atoms in a crystalline solid. In the triclinic system, the crystal is described by three basis vectors of unequal length, similar to the orthorhombic system. However, the angles between these vectors are all different and none of them are equal to 90 degrees.
+{{Short description|A crystal system with three unequal axes all intersecting at oblique angles}}
+{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}}
-== Characteristics ==
+==Overview==
+The '''triclinic crystal system''' is one of the seven [[crystal system|crystal systems]] in [[crystallography]]. It is characterized by having three axes of unequal length, all of which intersect at oblique angles. This means that none of the axes are perpendicular to each other, and the angles between them are not 90 degrees.
-Triclinic crystal systems are characterized by the following properties:
+==Characteristics==
+In the triclinic system, the unit cell is defined by three vectors of unequal length, denoted as ''a'', ''b'', and ''c''. The angles between these vectors, denoted as _, _, and _, are all different and none of them are 90 degrees. This results in the least symmetrical of all the crystal systems.
-* Three unequal lattice vectors (a, b, and c)
+==Symmetry==
-* Angles between the vectors are all different (α, β, and γ) and none are equal to 90 degrees
+The triclinic system has the lowest symmetry of all the crystal systems. It has only one [[point group]]: the identity group, which is denoted as 1, and the inversion group, denoted as \(\bar{1}\). This means that triclinic crystals have no rotational symmetry axes.
-* The simplest triclinic lattice is the primitive triclinic lattice (P), which has lattice points at the corners of the unit cell
-* Triclinic systems have the lowest symmetry among the seven crystal systems, with only two point groups (1 and -1)
-== Bravais Lattices ==
+==Examples==
+A common example of a mineral that crystallizes in the triclinic system is [[microcline]], a type of [[feldspar]]. Microcline is often found in [[granite]] and is known for its distinctive grid-like twinning pattern.
-There is only one Bravais lattice in the triclinic crystal system, the primitive triclinic lattice (P). In this lattice, there is only one lattice point per unit cell, located at the corners.
+[[File:Microcline.jpeg|thumb|Microcline, a mineral that crystallizes in the triclinic system]]
-== Point Groups ==
+==Related pages==
+* [[Crystal system]]
-Triclinic crystal systems have two point groups:
+* [[Crystallography]]
+* [[Mineral]]
-Triclinic Pinacoidal (point group 1): This group has no symmetry operations other than the identity operation.
+* [[Symmetry in crystallography]]
-Triclinic Pedial (point group -1): This group has inversion symmetry (center of symmetry) as the only operation.
-== Examples ==
-Some minerals that crystallize in the triclinic crystal system include:
-* Microcline (a type of potassium feldspar)
-* Axinite (a group of calcium aluminum borosilicate minerals)
-* Rhodonite (a manganese inosilicate)
-* Turquoise (a hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminum)
-== Comparison with other crystal systems ==
-The triclinic system is unique among the seven crystal systems in that it has the least symmetry and the most general set of lattice parameters. In comparison, the other six crystal systems have more constraints on the lengths and angles of their lattice vectors, resulting in higher symmetry.
+==References==
+* Klein, Cornelis and Cornelius S. Hurlbut, Jr. (1985). ''Manual of Mineralogy'' (20th ed.). John Wiley & Sons.
+* "Triclinic crystal system." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, last visited October 2023.
-== See also ==
-* [[Crystallography]]
-* [[Crystal system]]
-* [[Orthorhombic crystal system]]
-* [[Monoclinic crystal system]]
-{{stub}}
 [[Category:Crystallography]]
-[[Category:Crystal systems]]
+[[Category:Mineralogy]]
-[[Category:Triclinic crystal system]]