Symmetry And Physical Properties Of Crystals

Crystals are everywhere, from natural crystals (minerals) through the semiconductors and magnetic materials in electronic devices and computers or piezoelectric resonators at the heart of our quartz watches to electro-optical devices. Understanding them in depth is essential both for pure research and for their applications. This book provides a clear, thorough presentation of their symmetry, both at the microscopic space-group level and the macroscopic point-group level. The implications of the symmetry of crystals for their physical properties are then presented, together with their mathematical description in terms of tensors. The conditions on the symmetry of a crystal for a given property to exist then become clear, as does the symmetry of the property. The geometrical representation of tensor quantities or properties is presented, and its use in determining important relationships emphasized. An original feature of this book is that most chapters include exercises with complete solutions. This allows readers to test and improve their understanding of the material. The intended readership includes undergraduate and graduate students in materials science and materials-related aspects of electrical and optical engineering; researchers involved in the investigation of the physical properties of crystals and the design of applications based on crystal properties such as piezoelectricity, electro-optics, optical activity and all those involved in the characterization of the structural properties of materials.

Complete with reference tables and sample problems, this volume serves as a textbook or reference for solid-state physics and chemistry, materials science, and engineering. Chapters illustrate symmetry, and its role in determining solid properties, as well as a demonstration of group theory.

First published in 1957, this classic study has been reissued in a paperback version that includes an additional chapter bringing the material up to date. The author formulates the physical properties of crystals systematically in tensor notation, presenting tensor properties in terms of their common mathematical basis and the thermodynamic relations between them. The mathematical groundwork is laid in a discussion of tensors of the first and second ranks. Tensors of higher ranks and matrix methods are then introduced as natural developments of the theory. A similar pattern is followed in discussing thermodynamic and optical aspects.

Tensors, matrices, symmetry, and structure-property relationships form the main subjects of the book. While tensors and matrices provide the mathematical framework for understanding anistropy, on which the physical and chemical properties of crystals and textured materials often depend, atomistic arguments are also needed to qualify the property coefficients in various directions. The atomistic arguments are partly based on symmetry and party on the basic physics and chemistry of materials.

Modern semiconductor and laser techniques would be unthinkable today without a highly developed physics of solids. As tailored materials increasingly gain significance, it is more important than ever to understand the basics of crystalline materials and the influence of their symmetry on phenomenological aspects. This first international edition of a classic German standard integrates the latest developments in the field, including two-dimensional crystals and Giant Magneto-Resistance. Its aim is to impart the knowledge necessary to comprehend the manifold peculiarities of crystalline substances in a comprehensive and easily accessible manner. The book devotes much space to a coherent introduction to tensor calculation, making this the first to address the topic in a readily understandable way. Supplemented by 40 exercises with their solutions, this is an ideal textbook for students of physics and chemistry, solid state physicists and chemists, and materials scientists, but also a comprehensive resource for those who wish to get an overview of this important topic.