Edited by C. Giacovazzo. IUCr Texts on Crystallography 7, Oxford Science Publications, UK, 2002.
ISBN 0-19-850957-X
Reviewed by: Kevin L. Kendig and Laraba P. Kendig, Air Force Research Laboratory, WPAFB, Ohio, USA
Published in Microscopy & Analysis, January 2003
Giacovazzo et al. have written the second edition of their book that describes and explains a virtual cornucopia of topics in the broad field of modern crystallography. The chapters are titled: Symmetry in Crystals, Crystallographic Computing, The Diffraction of X-rays by Crystals, Beyond Ideal Crystals, Experimental Methods in X-ray and Neutron Crystallography, Solution and Refinement of Crystal Structures, Mineral and Inorganic Crystals, Molecules and Molecular Crystals, Protein Crystallography, and Physical Properties of Crystals: phenomenology and modelling. All of this is laid out in a generous 825 pages.
The chapters are well-written English, providing for smooth reading and facilitating understanding. The authors have done a good job in providing a solid background for chapter topic discussions, including the myriad of sub-topics. The breadth of these sub-topics is comprehensive, and the depth is sufficient to make this a solid text for a graduate course in crystallography. For example, the Symmetry in Crystals chapter includes sub-topics on symmetry elements, lattices, crystallographic directions and planes, point groups, Laue classes, crystal systems, Bravais lattices, space groups, and matrix representation of symmetry operations. Further, there is an appendix that goes into greater detail on space group matrices and symmetry groups and the methods and rationale for applying associated mathematical operations. This is far from introductory material!
Following each chapter is a list of references for further study, and most also have an appendix, which goes into more detail on some specific topics. There is a wealth of detail in the numerous descriptions and examples throughout the book. The gray-scale illustrations and micrographs are also plentiful, and it’s difficult to say too much about how well these were done.
There is software on an accompanying CD that contains additional illustrations and animations to elaborate on the text in the topic areas of symmetry, calculations, and diffraction. In this software, there are learning and teaching aids geared toward the introductory level. Illustrations of the symmetry operations may be especially helpful to those new to crystallography and having difficulty visualizing the operations.
I believe this book will make an excellent reference for those of us who use crystallography in our work. It may also be useful in the process of incorporating new techniques into our bag of tricks by laying a firm foundation for other, more advanced study. For example, the Experimental Methods in X-ray and Neutron Crystallography chapter covers neutron diffraction techniques, available sources, data collection, in-situ measurements, and data reduction all in about 70 pages; a good primer.
In addition, this book is well suited to use as a graduate course text. The advanced nature of the book will fit well with the varied research interests of the students. The lack of review questions and sample problems associated with each chapter does detract slightly from its appeal as a text, but I would regard this as a minor point. Due to the advanced nature of the material presented and level of mathematics required, and despite the accompanying software, this book does not appear to be a good choice for an undergraduate course in crystallography.
To sum up, we think this is an excellent book that successfully compiles many of the varied sub-fields of crystallography into one valuable text. We recommend this work to those who would like a good reference on the broad topic of crystallography and further recommend it to those looking for a text to use in teaching an advanced course in crystallography.