Non-Symmetric Solid State Interactions

晶体学是一种精确而直接的方法来确定固体晶体中分子的结构。它的工作原理是将基本化学单元（“不对称单元”）的结构与“晶格”（关于分子如何堆积在一起的信息）结合起来，以给出整个分子重复晶体阵列的结构。大多数情况下，不对称单元是一个单分子。然而，由于未知的原因，有时不对称单元包含两个、三个或更多个分子（高达32！）。这意味着晶体学家要做更多的工作，而且其发生的原因还不清楚。这种效应对于特定形状和功能的分子能够彼此相互作用的容易性具有根本意义。本提案将试图通过对已知结构的概述和对选定实例的详细研究来理解这一现象，最终得出预测性的经验教训。

Crystalloraphy is a precise and straightforward way to determine the structure of molecules in solid crystals. It works by combining the structure of a fundamental chemical unit (the 'asymmetric unit') with the 'lattice' (information about how molecules are packed together) to give the structure of the whole repeating crystalline array of molecules. Most of the time the asymmetric unit is one single molecule. For unknown reasons, however, sometimes the asymmetric unit comprises two, three or more molecules (up to 32!). This means more work for the crystallographer and the reasons for its occurrence are not understood. The effect has fundamental implications for the ease with which molecules of particular shape and functionality can interact with one another. This proposal will attempt to understand this phenomenon by taking an overview of known structures and by detailed study of selected examples, ultimately leading to predictive lessons.