Short Range & Long Range Order

Long Range Order Short Range Order

If the arrangement of atoms are regular, If the arrangement of atoms are

periodic, continuous and in an orderly irregular, discontinuous and in
fashion and also if the regularity & disordered fashion, then these materials
repeatability is achieved for a longer will have the orderliness only for a short
distances, throughout the entire volume distances, these are refereed to as
then the materials termed to have long Short range order
range order

• Crystalline materials are usually possessing LRO whereas the amorphous solids possess
SRO;

• Single-crystal materials feature long-range order throughout the entire piece of material
while poly-crystalline materials feature long-range order only within limited grains.

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Crystalline Materials
• A material has LRO if it exhibits the order over long distances throughout its entire volume

• The bond length will be uniform, repetitive and properly fashioned

• Crystalline structure is important because it contributes a lot to decide and alter the
properties of a material. For example, it is easier for planes of atoms to slide by each
other if those planes are closely packed.

• Crystals can be classified into (i) Single Crystalline and (ii) Poly-crystalline materials

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Single Crystalline Materials
• A single /mono-crystal is a crystalline solid in which the crystal lattice of the entire sample is
continuous and unbroken to the edges of the sample with no grain boundaries

• The absence of defects associated with grain can give mono-crystals with unique properties
in terms of mechanical, optical and electrical

Typical Uses

• Mono-crystals of Sapphire & other materials are used for making lasers and non-linear optics

– Barium titanate (BaTiO3) is a potential non-lead source of piezoelectric crystals for low
temperature and room temperature applications

– Single Crystals of Cu has better conductivity than the polycrystalline one

– Applications for quartz crystals include timing mechanisms for watches and clocks

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Crystalline and Noncrystalline Materials
Single crystals

• For a crystalline solid, when the periodic and repeated arrangement of atoms is perfect or
extends throughout the entirety of the specimen without interruption, the result is a single
crystal.

• All unit cells interlock in the same way and have the same orientation.

• single crystals have become extremely important in many of our modern technologies, in
particular electronic microcircuits, which employ single crystals of silicon and other
semiconductors

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School of Mechanical Engineering, VIT University, Vellore
 Single Crystal and Polycrystalline Materials

Cu-Ni alloy polycrystal Ni superalloy single crystal

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Typical Application (NASA Source)

High Pressure Turbine Blades consist of a 3-part system:

• The single crystal Ni substrate,

• The bond coat/environmental barrier, and

• The thermal barrier coating. The image above shows a high pressure turbine blade (left),
structure of the blade (center) and a magnified view of a single crystal alloy (right).

Reference : [Link]

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Crystalline and Noncrystalline Materials
Polycrystalline materials

• Most crystalline solids are composed of a collection of many small crystals or grains; such
materials are termed polycrystalline.

Schematic diagrams of the various stages in the solidification of a polycrystalline material;

Small crystallite Growth of the crystallites; Upon completion of The grain structure as
nuclei. the obstruction of some solidification, grains it would appear under
grains that are adjacent having irregular shapes the microscope; dark
to one another. have formed. lines are the grain
boundaries.

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Polycrystalline Materials
• A poly-crystalline material is composed of numerous, tiny crystals
called crystallites; usually these have grain boundaries

• Poly-crystalline materials contain regions where the different grains

meet is called as grain boundary

• Size of the grains can range from nanometer to being visible through
naked eye

• Grain boundaries profoundly affect the mechanical and electrical

properties of polycrystalline materials

• Depending on the size of the grain, the properties will vary

• Grains are classified based on the size (i) Coarse Grain (ii) Fine grain

• Grain size is normally quantified by a numbering system. Coarse 1-5 and fine 5-8.

• The number is derived from the formula n=2N-1 , where n = the number of grains per
square inch at 100X magnification, N = ASTM Grain Size number

• Fine grained materials offer higher tensile strength and ductility under ambient conditions
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Crystalline Materials
• Anisotropy

The physical properties of single crystals of some substances depend on the

crystallographic direction in which measurements are taken. This directionality of
properties is termed anisotropy, and it is associated with the variance of atomic or ionic
spacing with crystallographic direction

Eg., the elastic modulus, the electrical conductivity, and the index of refraction may have
different values in the [100] and [111] directions.

• Substances in which measured properties are independent of the direction of

measurement are isotropic.

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Noncrystalline Materials
Noncrystalline Solids

lack a systematic and regular arrangement of atoms over relatively large atomic
distances. Sometimes such materials are also called amorphous

crystalline

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Two-dimensional schemes of the structure of silicon dioxide

Amorphous crystalline

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Amorphous Materials
• They have short range atomic arrangement of atoms/ions show a particular order
relatively for a short distances

• Amorphous materials are often prepared by rapidly cooling the molten metal (such as
glass).

• The cooling reduces the mobility of material’s molecules before they can pack into a more
thermodynamically stable state

• Amorphous materials can also be produced by additives which interfere with the ability of
primary constituents to crystallize

• Eg. Addition of soda to SiO2 results in window glass

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Liquid Crystals
• These are the polymeric materials that have a special type of order

• LC Polymers behave as amorphous materials (liquid like) in one state.

• However when an external stimulus (such as an electric field/ a temp. change) is applied,
the polymer molecules undergo alignment & forms small regions that are crystalline and
hence the name “liquid crystals”

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