Condensed Matter Physics

and the Solid State

Seeks to describe the physical behavior of large
number of particles

3 States of Matter
Gas
Liquid
Solid

fluid

Crystals
A crystal lattice is a periodic array of points in space

Most simple chemical compounds in the solid state are crystalline

Crystal Lattice
(simple cubic)

Crystal Habits
(cubic)

From H. E. Hall

Microscopic view of a Cu(001) Surface:

Atomic-scale terraces are visible
Mounds appear as microscopic habits on an optically flat surface

100 nm

500 nm

Zuo & Wendelken, PRL 78 2791 (1997)

High-Temperature Superconductor:
YBa2Cu3O7
O

Cu
Building blocks of the
crystal lattice can contain
complex units

Ba

www.wfu.edu/~lawct/ybco.html

Crystals
A crystal lattice is a periodic array of points in space

Most simple chemical compounds in the solid state are crystalline

There are many amorphous compounds: no long-range
order
(glass and vitreous are other terms also used for this)

As we will see, crystalline materials helped physicists

understand condensed matter

Crystal Structure = Lattice + Basis

Lattice: an infinite periodic array of points, each of which represents a
quantity (basis) whose arrangement and orientation appear exactly
the same at all points in the array.
Position vector:

r
r
r
r
R = n1a1 + n2 a2 + n3 a3

Primitive vectors: the set of the smallest translation vectors

that make up the lattice
Any point on a lattice can be reached by an appropriate choice of n1, n2, n3 (integers)

Basis: units or objects that are located at each lattice point.

Unit Cells
Primitive Unit Cell: Volume of space that can be translated
through all primitive vectors of the lattice. It exactly fills space
without overlapping or gaps. The definition is not unique.

r r r
Vc = a3 (a2 a1 )

The Wigner-Seitz Primitive Cell a popular primitive cell construction

Draw lines between neighboring atoms
Draw lines perpendicular through the midpoint of these
Wigner-Seitz cell is the smallest enclosed volume

Conventional Unit Cell (the Unit Cell): Can be primitive or nonprimitive cell (it can contain more than one lattice point/cell which
would be included as a basis).
Primitive

Non-primitive
(2 lattice points per unit
cell in this example)

Bravais Lattices
Symmetry group of a crystal contains both:
Translational Symmetry
Point Symmetry

Point Symmetry Operations

2
Rotation
n
Cn

C1

C2

C3

C4

Reflection (mirror)

Inversion

r
r
r r

http://www.staff.ncl.ac.uk/j.p.goss/symmetry/Stereographs.html
http://www.reciprocalnet.org/edumodules/symmetry/operations/index.html

C5

C6

C2
2mm
One 2-fold rotation axis
Two mirror planes
http://www.staff.ncl.ac.uk/j.p.goss/symmetry/index.html

Bravais Lattices
Symmetry group of a crystal contains both:
Translational Symmetry
Point Symmetry

2D: 5 Bravais lattice types

3D: 14 Bravais lattice types

Five Bravais Lattices in 2D

From Marder

Objects with 5-fold symmetry cannot fill space

3 Dimensions:
7 Crystal Systems
14 Bravais Lattices

http://frank.mtsu.edu/~njsmith/modernii/lec10I.html

Lowest symmetry

abc

Highest symmetry
3 Cubic Lattices

a=b=c
o
= = = 90

2 Tetragonal Lattices

a=bc
o
= = = 90

4 Orthorhombic Lattices

abc
o
= = = 90

1 Hexagonal Lattice

c
a

a=bc
o
= = 90
o
= 120

1 Trigonal Lattice

Rhombohedral
or
Trigonal

a=b=c
o
o
= = < 120 90

2 Monoclinic Lattices

abc
o
= = 90

3 Dimensions: 7 Crystal Systems

14 Bravais Lattices

From Kittel

BCC Conventional & Primitive Cells

From Kittel

The Wigner-Seitz Primitive Cell

Draw between neighboring atoms
Draw lines perpendicular through midpoint of these
Wigner-Seitz cell is the smallest enclosed volume

2D

BCC

FCC Conventional & Primitive Cells

From Kittel

From Kittel

Structures Derived From FCC

Diamond Structure:
Examples are group IV elements:
C, Si, Ge, -Sn, but not Pb
2 Interpenetrating FCC based at:
(0,0,0) & (a/4, a/4, a/4)
Zinc-Blende Structure:
Examples: ZnS, ZnSe, ZnTe, CdS, CdTe, CuF, CuCl, AgI
III-V compounds: GaAs, AlAs, AlP, GaP, GaSb, InP
2 Interpenetrating FCC based at:
Ga at (0,0,0)
As at (a/4, a/4, a/4)

Structures Derived From FCC

Rock Salt Structure:
2 Interpenetrating FCC based at:
Na at (0,0,0)
Cl at (a/2, a/2, a/2)

Examples are usually ionically-bonded salts such as:

Alkali-Halides: NaCl, LiFetc
Alkaline-Chalcoginides (II-VI): CaS, MgS, SrSe, BaO, etc
AgF, AgCl (Ag is usually monovalent)
Rare-Earth Arsenides such as ErAs (Er is trivalent)

CsCl Structure: Derived From BCC

BCC-like structure with:
Cs at (0,0,0)
Cl at (a/2, a/2, a/2)

Examples: CsCl, NiAl, TiCl, TlI, AgCd

CaF2 Structure
FCC Ca based at (0,0,0)
SC F based at (a/4, a/4, a/4)

F
Ca

Examples:
Alkaline-Halides: CaF2 , BaF2
Alkali-Chalcoginides: Li2O, Na2S
Others: HfO2, CeO2, Mg2Si

Perovskite Structure
Ba at (0,0,0)
Ti at (a/2, a/2, a/2)
O at Face-Centered sites

Ti
Ba
O
Examples:
BaTiO3, LaAlO3, SrTiO3, KNiF3.
High-Tc superconductors based on these structures.
Often exhibit structural transitions to lower symmetry from rotation
or stretching of the oxygen octahedra which are often Ferroelectric.

Hexagonal Structures

X
X

a2
a1
a2 120
a1

X Aschroft & Mermin incorrectly give =60

=120 is the usual convention

a1 = a2 = a

Graphite (carbon): two hexagonal sheets

HCP
FCC

Hexagonal Close Pack (HCP):

ABABAB stacking sequence
c=a(8/3)=1.633a (not true for Graphite)

FCC: ABCABC stacking along [111]

Can have Stacking Faults

Similarity of FCC & HCP

From Kittel

Miller Indices: method to define a crystal plane

(2,3,3) plane

1.
2.
3.

Find intercept of plane on 3 axes

Take reciprocals of these numbers
Multiply to get smallest set of integers

(H,K,L) planes:
{H,K,L} indicates all symmetry-related planes
[H,K,L] indicates the direction in the crystal.
For cubic crystals [H,K,L] is perpendicular
to the (HKL) plane

From Kittel

14 Bravais Lattices
in 3D

(Kittel)

3 Dimensions:
7 Crystal Systems
14 Bravais Lattices
http://www.chem.ox.ac.uk/icl/heyes/structure_of_solids/lecture1/lec1.html