Structure determination from powder diffraction

The review surveys modern methods for the determination of unknown crystal structures of organic and inorganic compounds from powder diffraction data. The main stages of this process, from the preparation of the specimen to a search for the structural motif followed by the Rietveld refinement, are considered. The results obtained on different diffractometers using X-ray, synchrotron, and neutron radiations are demonstrated to be well reproducible. Examples of successful structure solution are cited, which provide evidence that powder diffraction is a reliable tool in establishing structures of a wide range of compounds for which single crystals are unavailable.