quasicrystal

noun

qua·​si·​crys·​tal ˈkwā-ˌzī-ˌkri-stᵊl How to pronounce quasicrystal (audio)
-sī-, 
ˈkwä-zē-, 
-sē-
: a body of solid material that resembles a crystal in being composed of repeating structural units but that incorporates two or more unit cells into a quasiperiodic structure
quasicrystalline
ˈkwā-ˌzī-ˌkri-stə-lən How to pronounce quasicrystal (audio)
-sī-, 
ˈkwä-zē-, 
-sē-
also -ˌlīn, 
-ˌlēn
adjective

Examples of quasicrystal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The quasicrystal seen in trinitite is made of the same four elements—iron, silicon, copper and calcium—that make up the newfound clathrate. — Clara Moskowitz, Scientific American, 11 May 2026 In 2021, an international team of scientists described the discovery of a quasicrystal in a sample of red trinitite. — David Bressan, Forbes.com, 16 July 2025 Historically, quasicrystals have been challenging to create and characterize. — Patchen Barss, Wired News, 5 Oct. 2025 For decades, scientists considered quasicrystals an impossibility. — Darren Orf, Popular Mechanics, 26 July 2023 In 1982, Dan Shechtman discovered that symmetries akin to the ones in Penrose tilings show up in nature in the form of structures called quasicrystals, in work that earned him the 2011 Nobel Prize in chemistry. — Erica Klarreich, Quanta Magazine, 4 Apr. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1922, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of quasicrystal was in 1922

Rhymes for quasicrystal

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quasi corporation
quasicrystal
quasi deposit
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Cite this Entry

“Quasicrystal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quasicrystal. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on quasicrystal

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about quasicrystal

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