Science of Crystals

Type: Presentation

Description:
Crystalline materials are important in many different technologies, from smartphones to lasers. This activity will allow kids (and kids at heart) to learn about a wide variety of crystals with different optical, electrical, and mechanical properties. As fascinating and often strikingly beautiful objects, crystals are an ideal gateway into the fields of solid-state chemistry, condensed matter physics, and materials engineering. We have developed hands-on activities tasking participants to identify single crystals from nature and the lab (e.g., garnet, fluorite, pyrite, ruby, alexandrite, zirconia) and to explore their optical and mechanical properties using simple tools.