Question:
(i) What is meant by the term 'coordination number'?
(ii) What is the coordination number of atoms:
(a) in a cubic close-packed structure?
(b) in a body-centred cubic structure?
Solution:
(i) The number of nearest neighbours of any constituent particle present in the crystal lattice is called its coordination number.
(ii) The coordination number of atoms
(a) in a cubic close-packed structure is 12, and
(b) in a body-centred cubic structure is 8