English

Noun

unit cell ‎(plural unit cells)

1. (crystallography) The smallest repeating structure (parallelepiped) of atoms within a crystal, from which the structure of the complete crystal can be inferred.
   • 1998, Georgina Ferry, Dorothy Hodgkin: A Life:

     The first task for a crystallographer is to establish the shape of the unit cell.

Translations

See also

• conventional cell
• primitive cell