Mineral Crystals

How do natural crystals form, what accounts for their precise shape and purity? Crystals reflect their elemental atomic and molecular composition. Under the right conditions of temperature and pressure, identical molecules dissolved in solution stick together and self-organize into extended structures. They stick because of molecular scale forces which favor identical shapes. The resulting structure has maximum density and smooth external surfaces, which accounts for the polished gem-like geometric shapes. Crystals manifest the fundamental components of matter and the physical laws they obey. The curiosity of many future scientists has been inspired by the existence of natural crystals.