Rhein-Main Universitäten (RMU)

For almost 50 years, single crystals of interest for basic research in solid-state physics have been grown in the crystal and materials laboratory of the Institute of Physics. Reference samples of many crystals are available to interested colleagues in Germany and abroad. The growth of the crystals and their physical characterization are documented in the technical literature. In most cases, this was done from the melt or a flux using the Czochralski or Bridgman method. 

The metallic crystals are mostly shiny; they are grown for investigations of electronic correlation. The non-metallic crystals are often transparent, but sometimes also colored. Their applications range from basic research to the development of methods for the industrial synthesis of zirconium dioxide (ZrO2), a diamond substitute material. The size of the crystals varies greatly, ranging from fractions of a millimeter to several centimeters, depending on the crystal size required for the respective investigation method.