Will Kleber, Hans-Joachim Bautsch, Joachim Bohm, Einführung in die Kristallographie

Abstract

This book is the classic German language textbook on Crystallography! It has first been published in 1956. Since then, the (VEB) Verlag Technik, Berlin, published a total of 18 editions up to 1998. In 2010, the Oldenbourg Verlag Munich published the 19th edition, with which this book review is mainly concerned. Up to 1970, i.e., the 10th German edition and 1st English edition (under the title An Introduction to Crystallography), Will Kleber was the sole author. Since then Irmgard Kleber, Hans-Joachim Bautsch, Joachim Bohm, and most recently Detlev Klimm worked on the subsequent editions. All of these authors followed the didactic approach of Will Kleber while incorporating newer results and expanding the references and index. All of crystallography is treated comprehensively under the five main sections: (i) crystal structure and morphology, (ii) crystal chemistry, (iii) physical-chemical crystallography, (iv) crystal physics, and (v) structure analysis of crystals. There are a total of 413 pages of text and an addendum (Wulff net, Schmidt net and birefringence/interference table). Very notable additions of recent years in the crystal physics section are the symmetry groups of fields and Curie's symmetry principle as well as an introduction to the tensor formalism. Otherwise, this reviewer feels that especially the sections on structure analysis and crystal chemistry need updating. With respect to the described crystal structure types, the crystal chemistry section is partially outdated. There are no descriptions of modern materials, modular structures, nano-structured materials, and biological macromolecule structures. This reviewer missed also an introduction to group-subgroup symmetry relations between crystal structures (i.e. Bärnighausen trees). Open-access Internet resources such as the “Bilbao Crystallographic Server” (http://www.cryst.ehu.es/) and the “Crystallography Open Database” (www.crystallography.net) should be mentioned in future editions of the book, since the latter database possesses more than 200,000 (unit cell parameters, space group and setting, atomic coordinates, …, full bibliography) entries. In the structure analysis section, the Weissenberg method (of 1924) and other film-based methods of X-ray diffraction data collection are covered extensively while position sensitive X-ray detectors are not even mentioned. Similarly, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and electron diffraction are covered within nine pages only that seem to have not changed much over recent years. As a result, instrumental (such as TEM-lens aberration correction) and methodical (e.g., precession electron diffraction based crystallography) breakthroughs are ignored although there is an atomic-resolution phase-contrast TEM image on the front cover of the book. As for this front cover image, it would be of higher pedagogical value if it were to show a length scale marker. Also a model of the crystal structure could be shown on the book cover in three dimensions next to this image (rather than sketched into the two-dimensional experimental data). As far as this reviewer is aware, there were no more English language editions since 1970. This is a real pity as generations of materials science and crystallography students in the English speaking parts of the world have missed out on this classical textbook. There are indeed a few classical books, e.g., John von Neumann’s, Mathematische Grundlagen der Quantummechanik (Julius Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 1932, Springer 1968 and 1996; translated into English 1949: Mathematical Foundations of Quantum Mechanics, Princeton Landmarks in Mathematics, 12th printing, 1996), that never need updating. Will Kleber's book, however, needs updating in future editions because it aims to cover classical and topical theories as well as experiments comprehensively. Because its original approach to introducing crystallography has still lots of merits, a 20th German/2nd English edition of his book would be very valuable for the education of new generations of materials scientists and crystallographers worldwide. Active research scientists/educators such as Detlef Klimm who “grew up” with “The Kleber”, utilized it as main textbook while studying crystallography as undergraduates and/or graduates (and are now in their forties to mid-fifties), could be the authors of such new editions.