Polymorphism and Phase Transitions in Crystal Materials
A special issue of Crystals (ISSN 2073-4352). This special issue belongs to the section "Crystal Engineering".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 August 2025 | Viewed by 225
Special Issue Editor
Interests: polymorphism; DFT calculations on molecular solids; NMR parameter calculations; molecular dynamics simulations; phase transitions
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Polymorphs differ in crystal packing, and thus have different structure-related properties such as melting point, solubility, stability, hardness, elasticity, and color. As a general phenomenon in nature, polymorphism brings challenges to the manufacturing of a desired solid form with consistent properties against the formation of a second solid form, and opportunities in the sense that a new crystal structure can provide solids with higher solubility, mechanical strength or stability. As a result, the comprehension of the solid-state landscape for molecule of interests by form screening and predictions has become an increasingly important topic in the development of pharmaceutical solids, agrochemicals, explosives, dyes and pigments.
It is also essential to characterize the thermodynamics and kinetics of polymorph formation and their transitions in order to control the crystallization outcome and avoid potential form change risks.
Although an unexpected form change is undesirable in most cases, phase transitions by design can provide unique opportunities for creative applications. For example, researchers have shown great interest in employing phase-change materials in energy storage, due to the latent heat during phase transitions and in optical data storage due to the electrical conductivity difference between crystalline and amorphous phases. In recent years, a growing number of crystals have been discovered that present thermosalient effects, that is, a crystal jumps as a result of a polymorphic transition, simultaneously converting heat to work, which is sometimes reversible. These discoveries, together with others not mentioned, have greatly broaden the applications of phase transitions in crystals, and emphasize the importance of continuing research on the characterization and understanding of these processes.
This Special Issue aims to present the recent progress in the discovery, characterization, control, prediction and application of polymorphs and their transformations using both experimental and computational tools. We welcome original research and review papers both on single-component and multi-component crystals, on natural and man-made crystals, and on inorganic and organic crystals.
Dr. Łukasz Szeleszczuk
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- polymorph
- polymorphism
- phase transition
- form change
- crystal
- cocrystal
- solid
- pharmaceutical
- solid state
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