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Glittering
Stones >> Single Crystal
Single crystal
A single crystal, also called mono-crystal,
is a crystalline solid in which the crystal lattice of the whole
sample is constant and unbroken to the edges of the sample, with
no grain boundaries. The opposite of a single crystal
example is a polycrystalline sample, which is made up
of a number of smaller crystals known as crystallites.
Because of a diversity of entropic effects on the microstructure
of solids, include the distorting effects of impurities and the
mobility of crystallographic faults and dislocations, single crystals
of meaningful size are very rare in nature, and could also be
difficult to produce in the laboratory under forbidden conditions .
Because grain boundaries could have significant effects on the
physical and electrical properties of a material, solitary
crystals are of interest to industry, and have significant
industrial applications. The most notable of these is the use
of single crystal
silicon in the manufacture of semiconductors. On the quantum scale
that microprocessors function on, the presence of grain boundaries
might have a significant impact on the functionality of field
effect transistors by altering local electrical properties. Therefore,
microprocessor fabricators have invested a lot in facilities to
produce large single crystals of silicon.
Uses
• Mono-crystals of silicon and other semi-conductors
are important for manufacture of integrated circuits.
• Mono-crystals of sapphire
and also other materials are used for lasers and nonlinear optics.
• Mono-crystals of fluorite are at times used in the object
lenses of Apo chromatic refracting telescopes.
• Mono-crystals of metals, particularly super alloys, are
used for their special mechanical properties. Turbine blades of
little gas turbines are made of single crystal cast super alloy.
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