In mathematics and geometry, a space group is a symmetry group, usually for three dimensions, that divides space into discrete repeatable domains.
In three dimensions, there are 219 distinct types, or counted as 230 if chiral copies are considered distinct. Space groups are also studied in dimensions other than 3 where they are sometimes called Bieberbach groups, and are discrete cocompact groups of isometries of an oriented Euclidean space.
In crystallography, they are also called the crystallographic or Fedorov groups, and represent a description of the symmetry of the crystal. A definitive source regarding 3-dimensional space groups is the International Tables for Crystallography (Hahn (2002)).
Read more about Space Group: History, Elements of A Space Group, Notation For Space Groups, Classification Systems For Space Groups, Table of Space Groups in 3 Dimensions
Famous quotes containing the words space and/or group:
“Our passionate preoccupation with the sky, the stars, and a God somewhere in outer space is a homing impulse. We are drawn back to where we came from.”
—Eric Hoffer (1902–1983)
“around our group I could hear the wilderness listen.”
—William Stafford (1914–1941)