Scientists in the US have devised a method for printing three dimensional models of crystals using a 3D printer, the original CIF file and freely available software that can be run on standard operating systems.
Crystallographers like to picture complex crystal structures in three dimensions. Many use software that allows them to visualise the structures in a virtual space, but a better option would a physical model that you could hold in your hand.
Interested? Read the full article at Chemistry World.
The original article can be read below:
How to Print a Crystal Structure Model in 3D
Teng-Hao Chen, Semin Lee, Amar H Flood and Ognjen Miljanic
CrystEngComm, 2014, Accepted Manuscript
DOI: 10.1039/C4CE00371C
