3.3 Imperfections in crystals

In a sound crystal (or in an ideal crystal), the atoms are arranged regularly and periodically in three dimensions. But the grown crystals [or real crystals] may contain imperfections or defects. These defects are mainly divided into point, line, surface and volume defects. We will discuss point and line defects. They are described below:

(1)Point defects: As the name indicates, these defects are at some points in the crystal. So, these are also called zero-dimensional defects. The point defects are divided into three categories: (a) lattice site defects; this includes vacancies [Schottky defect] and interstitialcies [Frenkel defect], (b) compositional defects; this includes substitutional impurity and interstitial ...

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