Scientifically speaking, the term “crystal” refers to any solid that has an ordered chemical structure. This means that its parts are arranged in a precisely ordered pattern, like bricks in a wall.

In exploring how crystals form, the researchers also came across an unusual, rod-shaped crystal that hadn’t been identified before, naming it “Zangenite” for the NYU graduate student who discovered it ...

Found in salt, sugar, snowflakes and gemstones, crystals are highly ordered, layered structures Although crystals are ubiquitous in nature, how they form has remained a mystery Using optimized ...

Researchers in Vienna have discovered something remarkable: crystals that don’t form in space, like diamonds or salt, but in time itself. Instead of atoms arranging neatly into repeating patterns, ...

Crystals—from sugar and table salt to snowflakes and diamonds—don’t always grow in a straightforward way. New York University researchers have captured this journey from amorphous blob to orderly ...

For the first time ever, researchers have watched the mesmerizing process of nanoparticles self-assembling into solid materials. In the stunning new videos, particles rain down, tumble along ...