Noun
X-ray crystallography (uncountable)
(analytical chemistry) A technique in which the patterns formed by the diffraction of X-rays on passing through a crystalline substance yield information on the lattice structure of the crystal, and the molecular structure of the substance.
X-Ray crystallography is nowadays an accurate and rapid method of determining conformation in the crystal lattice, which conformation usually corresponds to the preferred conformation in solution. Derek Barton