How to Search the NIST Crystal Database

These web pages can be used to search the NIST Crystal Database for entries matching certain logical constraints. Access is limited to people licensed to use the database. Information on the database is available from NIST Office of Standard Reference Data.


Search Page

Information is supplied on the search page to define the entries to be located. A variety of search constraints may be specified, as is discussed below. Note that any of these search constraints may be used, or optionally they may be used in any combination. If more than open search constraint is specified, the search will locate only those entries that satisfy all the constraints.

Searching by Chemistry

Searching by Number of Unique Elements

Searching by Categories

Searching by Reduced Cell

Searching by Unit Cell Edge Ratios

Project Name


Results Page

After a search is entered, the response is a page titled "NIST Crystal Data database search result" that shows the output from the search program. Unless an error is encountered, the results are in two sections, labeled "Last search result", which shows the commands used in the last search request, and "Previous search results" which shows the last search and any previous searches in a table.

Browse

Combining Searches

Deleting Searches


Browse Page

When Browse is clicked, a table is displayed with a row for each entry. The first column of the table is the sequential number assigned to each with respect to the number of entries that match the search constraints. If you click on this number, that entry is displayed on a page by itself.

Note that the space that is shown may be an "aspect" when the structure is not known; this specifies a family of space groups with equivalent systematic absences.


Single Entry Page

After a single entry has been selected from the browse page, it is displayed with much (but currently not all) of the information contained in the database.
December 1999 (beta test)
Brian Toby and Vicky Lynn Karen