The crystal and molecular structure of fluorene

Abstract

Fluorene, C 13 H 10 , crystallizes in the orthorhombic system, space group Pnam with four molecules per unit cell. The molecule possesses a plane of symmetry which is parallel to the (001) plane of the crystal. The structure has been determined by trial-and-error methods, followed (i) by a least-squares refinement and (ii) by two-dimensional Fourier syntheses. The results from the two methods of refinement are compared and for (ii) a method is given for systematically correcting for overlapping of atoms in projections. The accuracy of the co-ordinates given by these methods is discussed in detail, and it is concluded that the co-ordinates adopted are correct to ±0.017 Å. The carbon skeleton is planar to within the experimental error and the equation of the plane is y = 1.4375 x + 11.0947.