Arem, J.
Man-made Crystals
. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Press, 1973. A very readable account of crystal synthesis and the use of man-made crystals for semi-conductors, transistors, and integrated circuits.
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Rocks and Minerals
. New York: Bantam Books, 1973. A well-illustrated paperback handbook with descriptions of atoms, bonds, and crystal structures. The minerals are grouped by chemical composition and are beautifully illustrated.
Brown, G. and Crooker, P. “Liquid Crystals.”
C&EN
(January 31, 1983), pp.24-38. Hard to read, but complete discussion of liquid crystals.
Cady, W. “Crystals and Electricity.”
Scientific American
(December, 1949), pp.46-51. An understandable, concise discussion of piezoelectricity, its uses, and how it works. Highly recommended.
Chalmers, B. “Photovoltaic Generation of Electricity.”
Scientific American
(Oct. 1976): 34-43. An excellent discussion of p, n-type silicon, the p-n junction, and the solar cell circuit. It also covers problems and economics of solar technology. An outstanding reference written in understandable language.
Dana, E.
Minerals and How to Study Them
. Revised by C. Hurlbut. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1949. Old but very complete guide to minerals. Crystallography discussed in detail and it has a convenient compact size and is easy to understand.
Desautels, P.
Rocks and Minerals
. New York: Grosset and Dunlap, 1974. Outstanding demonstration photos—double page size, 16” x 12”. with a brief description of photo subjects and related varieties.
English, G.
Getting Acquainted with Minerals
. New York: McGraw Hill Book Company, 1958. Textbook of mineralogy with an identification key based on hardness and luster.
Hewitt, P.
Conceptual Physics
. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1985. General college-level physics text.
Hittinger, W. “Metal Oxide Semi-Conductor Technology.”
Scientific American
(August 1973). Advanced level discussion of semi-conductors (bipolar and unipolar) and integrated circuits.
Holden, A.
The Nature of Solids
. New York: Columbia University Press, 1965. A basic, comprehensive guide to the physics and chemistry of crystals. It is a good introductory book for a study of crystallography.
Holden, A., and Morrison, P.
Crystals and Crystal Growing
. Cambridge, Mass.: The MIT Press, 1982. A well-written guide to crystals, covering everything from the physics and chemistry of crystals, structures, and uses to the actual growing techniques. Enjoyable reading and my first choice recommendation.
Hurlbut, C. Dana’s
Manual of Mineralogy
. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1959. A detailed text book, but has an excellent key to identify minerals, and several useful pages of tables.
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Minerals and Man
. New York: Random House, 1970. This book is a masterpiece of information and color photographs which reads like a novel. 304 pages of detailed information and stories which will certainly hold your interest and attention. Highly recommended.
Kahn, F. “The Molecular Physics of Liquid-Crystal Devices.”
Physics Today
(May 1982), pp.66-74. A very technical discussion of liquid crystals with helpful diagrams.
Kirkaldy, J.F.
Minerals and Rocks
. Poole, England: Blandford Press, 1963. Handbook format with many color photos and some descriptive geology. An important feature is the extensive glossary of terms.
McGavack, J. and LaSalle, D.
Crystals, Insects, and Unknown Objects
. New York: The John Day Company, 1971. A book written by a former Science Supervisor and Assistant Superintendent of Schools in New Haven, focuses on hands-on learning techniques and incorporates a unit on crystal growing and its creative approach to learning.
O’Neil, P.
Gemstones
. Alexandria, VA.: Time-Life Books, 1983. A richly illustrated, well written book that covers the formation, the composition, and the history of gems. Highly recommended, enjoyable.
Pearl, R. Gem,
Minerals, Crystals, and Ores
. New York: Odyssey Press, 1964. Interesting discussion of gem cutting. Outstanding glossary of mineral terms, crystal terms, mineral name origins, mining and geology terms, as well as multitudes of listed minerals and ores.
Ransom, J.
The Rock Hunter’s Range Guide
. New York: Harper and Row, 1964. Good for beginning rock collectors. Explains the use of geologic maps and where to get them, how to prospect new locations, and listings of mineral sites for each state.
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A Range Guide to Mines and Minerals
. New York: Harper and Row, 1964. A more comprehensive guide to mineral collecting with lists of abandons mines in the United States.
Read, P.G.
Dictionary of Gemmology
. London: Butterworth Scientific, 1982. Comprehensive dictionary whose recent publication date makes it useful.
Swan, C. SunCell: Energy, Economy, Photovoltaics. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books, 1986. A comprehensive guide to solar energy dealing with everything from the physics of the cells, the practical uses, the future uses, to the politics and economics of solar energy.
White, J. Color
Underground
. New York: Charles Scribner Sons, 1971. Beautifully illustrated picturebook of crystals. Large pictures good for displaying with each crystal described and explained. Good for student or teacher use.
Woods, E.
Crystals—A Handbook for School Teachers
. The International Union of Crystallography, 1972. A small but very useful book giving step-by-step directions for growing a wide variety of crystals plus an assortment of things to do with the crystals you grow. Highly recommended.