Question

In a crystal of diamond:

1. How many carbon atoms are present per unit cell?
2. What type of lattice does diamond crystallise in?
3. How many carbon atoms surround each carbon atom?
4. How are they arranged?

Answer 1

1. 8 carbon atoms are present per unit cell of diamond.
2. Diamond crystallises in a face-centred cubic (fcc) lattice, also called the diamond cubic structure.
3. Each carbon atom is surrounded by 4 other carbon atoms.
4. The 4 surrounding carbon atoms are arranged in a tetrahedral geometry, with each carbon forming strong covalent bonds, resulting in a 3D rigid network.