THE GROWTH OF METAL SINGLE CRYSTALS

Abstract

Before 1939, metal single crystals were of interest only to a small number of solid-state physicists and an equally small group of research metallurgists, whose principal aim was to understand how metals deform plastically. Single crystals had also been used for the determination of physical and mechanical properties in various crystallographic directions. Much of this pioneer work is reviewed in the well-known book “Kristallplastizität” by Schmid and Boas. Since the war, the number of physicists interested in the solid state has greatly increased, while in metallurgical circles the study of single crystals has assumed an air of almost complete conventionality. The surge in fundamental work on metals has led to the very widespread use of single crystals, and today equipment for their preparation is standard in a large number of laboratories. Whilst the principles of the methods used are still the same as in the twenties, in detail the methods are often more sophisticated and the products more satisfactory, particularly from the points of view of purity and crystal perfection.