Abstract
WE have applied optical and interferometric techniques to stearic acid crystals (CH3(CH2)16COOH) which were grown from a dilute solution in benzene of the compound. Tabular crystals were produced by slow evaporation of a drop of this solution placed upon a clean, cooled microscope slide. Many spiral features have been observed upon the basal planes by examining the silvered crystals under phase-contrast illumination. These are growth spirals in accordance with the dislocation theory of Burton, Cabrera and Frank1.
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References
Burton, W. K., Cabrera, N., and Frank, F. C., Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc., A, 243, 299 (1951).
Müller, A., Proc. Roy. Soc., A, 114, 522 (1927).
Tolansky, S., “Multiple Beam Interferometry of Surfaces and Films” (Oxf. Univ. Press, 1948).
Proc. Phys. Soc. (in the press).
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REYNOLDS, P., VERMA, A. Growth and Optical Properties of Stearic Acid Crystals. Nature 171, 486–487 (1953). https://doi.org/10.1038/171486a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/171486a0
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