crystallite
/ˈkrɪst(ə)lʌɪt
/noun
1An individual perfect crystal or region of regular crystalline structure in the substance of a material, typically of a metal or a partly crystalline polymer.Iron oxide is not a common catalyst support for other precious metals and the optimum crystallite size is larger for gold than for many other precious metal systems....
- Only the stone floor upon which he stood seemed distinct: he could see the faces of the individual crystallites that made up the polished surface, and felt as if he would see the little lines of atoms if he knelt down close enough.
- The early stages of mineralization of bone tissue proceed through the formation and growth of bioapatite crystallites from a precursor material.
1.1A very small crystal.Spherulites are ideally spherical mineral growths formed by initial crystallization of a seed crystal, or crystallite, within a melt or a solution that grows outward in all directions....
- The bioapatite crystallites are small and elongated along the crystallographic c axis, and they grow as bone maturation proceeds.
- The resulting crystals are riddled with flaws: they are really a patchwork of tiny crystallites welded together with their atomic lattices tilted at different angles.