unit cell

unit cell

English

Noun

unit cell (plural unit cells)

1. (crystallography) The smallest repeating structure (parallelepiped) of atoms within a crystal, from which the structure of the complete crystal can be inferred.
   • 1998, Georgina Ferry, Dorothy Hodgkin: A Life:

     The first task for a crystallographer is to establish the shape of the unit cell.

Translations

smallest repeating structure in crystal

Finnish: alkeiskoppi Galician: cela unidade

Italian: cella elementare f Spanish: celda unidad

See also

• conventional cell
• primitive cell