Why are most crystals not perfect?
2007-11-27 10:12:33 · 2 answers · asked by Jeanette50 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Earth Sciences & Geology
Because they grow in impure conditions. That is, they grow with trace elements that cause them to have occlusions, undesirable color, etc.
2007-11-27 10:30:13 · answer #1 · answered by Flyboy 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The short answer is entropy and it is not that most crystals are not perfect. I would say that there is no such thing as a perfect crystal but it also depends on what you mean by perfect.
Nothing is 100% pure. For metals (which are normally crystals) the best purity mankind can achieve is about 99.99999% pure. If you know about Avagadro's number, atoms and moles, that leaves room for a lot of impurity atoms. In nature, I do not believe that anything approaches this level of purity. If you are talking about, for example, a quartz crystal, it might be about 90% quartz with 10% impurities.
If you are talking about geometric perfection, then you have to look at how perfectly the atoms (or molecules) are stacked together to form the crystal structure. There are many types of imperfections in crystals. Some you can see by eye, some you can see under an optical microscope and some you need a very good electron microscope to see.
In some way or other, all these imperfections occur because of entropy, nature abhors a vacuum and abhors perfection. On the other hand, there is nothing more perfect than a summer day at the beach. It all depends on how you define perfect. good luck
2007-11-27 18:37:43 · answer #2 · answered by Gary H 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋