Wyckoff positions

In crystallography, a Wyckoff position is a point belonging to a set of points for which site symmetry groups are conjugate subgroups of the space group.^[1] Crystallography tables give the Wyckoff positions for different space groups.

Wyckoff positions are used in calculations of crystal properties. There are two types of positions: general and special.

• General positions are left invariant only for the identity operation (E). Each space group has only one general position.
• Special positions are left invariant by the identity operation and at least one other operation of the space group.

External links

• American Mineralogical Society Crystal Structure Database
• Bilbao Crystallographic Server

References

1. Lev. Kantorovich (2004). Quantum Theory of the Solid State: An Introduction. Springer. p. 28.