Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-materials-science-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2022/paper-1/1/a/i/solution

A periodic crystal cannot have a fivefold crystallographic rotation axis. The crystallographic restriction theorem permits rotation orders for a periodic Bravais lattice. A rotation cannot preserve such a lattice. This restriction concerns exact symmetry of the infinite crystal structure; an isolated finite cluster with fivefold symmetry is a different object.

New to topics? Read the docs here!