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Cryptic crystallography

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A method for predicting crystal structures from just molecular formulae has eluded scientists for more than 50 years. The problem is currently being addressed by two very different approaches. But which one is more likely to succeed?

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Figure 1

M.C. Escher's “Horsemen” ©2002 Cordon Art B.V. – Baarn – Holland. All rights reserved

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Figure 3

“Dancing Men” sourced from The Complete Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Published by Martin Secker and Warburg Ltd, London, 1981.

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  1. School of Chemistry, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad, 500 046, India

    Gautam R. Desiraju

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  1. Gautam R. Desiraju
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Desiraju, G. Cryptic crystallography. Nature Mater 1, 77–79 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat726

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