Crystal Structures

• Solids crystallize into definite geometric forms

• Many times, the naked eye can see the crystal structure
• NaCl forms cubic crystals
• Possess definite geometric forms as the atoms or ions are arranged in definite,
three-dimensional patterns
• Unit cell: Smallest structural unit which, when repeated over and over again in
three dimension, generates a crystal

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Unit Cells in Metals
• Simple cubic cell (SC): Eight atoms with centers located at the corners
• Face-centered cubic cell (FCC): Simple cubic plus one atom at the center of each of
the six faces of the cube
• Body-centered cubic (BCC): Simple cubic plus one atom at the center of the cube

Masterton/Hurley, Chemistry: Principles and Reactions, 8th Edition. © 2016 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May
not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Figure 9.19 - Types of Unit Cells

Masterton/Hurley, Chemistry: Principles and Reactions, 8th Edition. © 2016 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May
not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Table 9.7 - Properties of Cubic Unit Cells

Masterton/Hurley, Chemistry: Principles and Reactions, 8th Edition. © 2016 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May
not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Figure 9.20 - Relation Between Atomic Radius
(r) and Length of Edge (s) for Cubic Cells

Masterton/Hurley, Chemistry: Principles and Reactions, 8th Edition. © 2016 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May
not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Example 9.8 (1 of 3)
• Silver is a metal commonly used in jewelry and photography. It crystallizes with a
face-centered cubic (FCC) unit cell 0.407 nm on an edge.
• What is the atomic radius of silver in cm?
• Analysis:
• Information given
• Type of cubic cell (face-centered)
• Length of side, s (0.407 nm)
• nm to cm conversion

Masterton/Hurley, Chemistry: Principles and Reactions, 8th Edition. © 2016 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May
not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Example 9.8 (2 of 3)
• Information implied
• Side and atomic radius relationship in a face-centered cubic cell
• Asked for
• Atomic radius of silver in cm
• Strategy:
• Relate the atomic radius, r, to the side of the cube, s, in a face-centered cubic cell (FCC)
• Substitute into the equation

• Convert nm to cm

Masterton/Hurley, Chemistry: Principles and Reactions, 8th Edition. © 2016 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May
not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Example 9.8 (3 of 3)
• Solution:
•

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not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Ionic Crystals
• Geometry of ionic crystals is more difficult to describe than that of metals
• LiCl
• Larger • form a face-centered cube with
• in the holes between the anions
• NaCl
• Larger • are slightly too large to fit into the holes between the anions, so the
are pushed apart slightly

Masterton/Hurley, Chemistry: Principles and Reactions, 8th Edition. © 2016 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May
not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Figure 9.21 - Types of Lattices in Ionic Crystals

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not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Example 9.9 (1 of 2)
• Consider the three types of lattices in ionic crystals. The length of an edge of a
cubic cell, s, is the distance between the center of an atom or ion at the “top” of
the cell and the center of the atom or ion at the “bottom.” Taking the
• ionic radii
• of
determine s for NaCl and LiCl.
• Strategy:
• Use the image describing the three types of lattices in ionic crystals to determine along
which line the ions touch

Masterton/Hurley, Chemistry: Principles and Reactions, 8th Edition. © 2016 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May
not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Example 9.9 (2 of 2)
• Solution:
• NaCl
• The atoms touch along a side
•

• LiCl
• The chloride atoms touch along a face diagonal
•

Masterton/Hurley, Chemistry: Principles and Reactions, 8th Edition. © 2016 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May
not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.