Chemical crystallography is the determination of solid-state structure of a molecule by an X-ray diffraction experiment on a single crystal. A crystal is oriented in a particular diffracting position by an instrument known as a diffractometer.
Function follows structure: For instance, the knowledge of accurate molecular structures is a prerequisite for rational drug design and for structure-based functional studies to aid the development of effective therapeutic agents and drugs. Crystallography can reliably provide the answer to many structure related questions, from details of intramolecular bonding to an examination of lattice construction.
In contrast to more indirect spectroscopic method such as NMR, no size limitation exists for the molecule or complex to be studied. With NMR techniques compounds must be soluble.
When you absolutely, positively have to know exactly what it is….
X-ray Crystallography Advances
Recent advances in the instrumentation for small-molecule X-ray crystallography have made it possible to complete a full structural characterization of a new material in a few hours, at low cost and with less ambiguity than any other structured characterizational method currently available.