Powder diffraction crystallography of molecular solids.

Kenneth D M Harris

School of Chemistry, Cardiff University, Park Place, Cardiff, Wales, CF10 3AT, UK. HarrisKDM@cardiff.ac.uk

Topics in current chemistry 2012

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Many important crystalline solids cannot be prepared as single crystals of suitable size and quality for structural characterization by conventional single-crystal X-ray diffraction techniques and can instead be prepared only as microcrystalline powders. However, recent advances in techniques for determining crystal structures directly from powder X-ray diffraction data have created a unique opportunity for establishing structural properties of such materials. This chapter surveys the applications of powder X-ray diffraction across various aspects of structural and materials chemistry, focusing mainly on the opportunities that have emerged in recent years for carrying out complete crystal structure determination from powder X-ray diffraction data and giving particular emphasis to the case of molecular crystal structures. The current scope and future potential of powder X-ray diffraction as a strategy for crystal structure determination are discussed, and examples of applications across several disciplines of materials chemistry are presented.