A '''crystal''' or crystalline solid is a solid [[material]], whose constituent [[atoms]], [[molecule]]s, or ions are arranged in an orderly repeating [[pattern]] extending in all three spatial [[dimension]]s. The [[scientific]] [[study]] of crystals and crystal formation is [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystallography crystallography]. The [[process]] of crystal formation via [[mechanism]]s of crystal [[growth]] is called crystallization or solidification. The word crystal is derived from the ancient Greek word κρύσταλλος (krustallos), which had the same [[meaning]], but according to the ancient understanding of crystal. At root it means anything congealed by freezing, such as ice.[1] The word once referred particularly to quartz, or "rock crystal". | A '''crystal''' or crystalline solid is a solid [[material]], whose constituent [[atoms]], [[molecule]]s, or ions are arranged in an orderly repeating [[pattern]] extending in all three spatial [[dimension]]s. The [[scientific]] [[study]] of crystals and crystal formation is [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystallography crystallography]. The [[process]] of crystal formation via [[mechanism]]s of crystal [[growth]] is called crystallization or solidification. The word crystal is derived from the ancient Greek word κρύσταλλος (krustallos), which had the same [[meaning]], but according to the ancient understanding of crystal. At root it means anything congealed by freezing, such as ice.[1] The word once referred particularly to quartz, or "rock crystal". |