What is X-ray Diffraction and What are its application in chemistry?
A1. The phenomena by which X-rays are reflected from the atoms in a crystalline solid is called diffraction. The diffracted X-rays generate a pattern that reveals structural orientation of each atom in a given compound. X-ray diffraction is extensively used in chemistry for the characterization of organic and inorganic compounds that are made for pharmaceutical companies or making batteries of the cell phones. XRD finds the geometry or shape of a molecule using X-rays. This technique is based on the elastic scattering of X-rays from structures that have long range order (crystalline solids). XRD technique is divided into two categories based on the morphology and size of sample: 1. If a crystal sample is large enough then it can be analyzed using X-ray Single Crystal diffraction, which solves for the complete structure ranging from simple inorganic solids to complex macromolecules. When we say ” crystals of large enough size” please note that they are still small enough for the normal
