From Wikipedia,
the free encyclopedia
In
mathematics, point group
is a
group of geometric
symmetries (isometries)
leaving a point fixed. Point
groups can exist in a
Euclidean space of any
dimension. In 2D, a discrete point
group is sometimes called a
rosette group, and is used to
describe the symmetries of an
ornament. The 3D discrete point
groups are heavily used in
chemistry, especially to describe
the symmetries of a
molecule and of
orbitals forming
covalent bonds, and in this
context they are also called
molecular point groups. See
point groups in three dimensions.
There are infinitely many
discrete point groups in each
number of dimensions. However,
only a finite number is compatible
with
translational symmetry. This
is stated in the
crystallographic restriction
theorem. In 1D there are 2, in
2D 10, and in 3D 32. They are
called
crystallographic point groups.
Point groups in 2D fall into
two distinct families, according
to whether they consist of
rotations only, or include
reflections. The
cyclic groups, Cn
(abstract group type Zn),
consist of rotations by 360°/n,
and all integer multiples. For
example, a
swastika has
symmetry group C4,
consisting of rotations by 0°,
90°, 180°, and 270°. The symmetry
group of a
square belongs to the family
of
dihedral groups, Dn
(abstract group type Dihn),
including as many reflections as
rotations. The infinite rotational
symmetry of the circle implies
reflection symmetry as well, but
formally the
circle group S1 is
distinct from Dih(S1)
because it explicitly includes the
reflections. Note that an infinite
group need not be continuous; for
example, we have a group of all
integer multiples of rotation by
360°/√2, which does not include
rotation by 180°. Depending on
application,
homogeneity up to arbitrarily
fine detail in
transverse direction may be
considered equivalent to full
homogeneity in that direction, in
which case these symmetry groups
can be ignored. See also
point groups in two dimensions.
Cn and Dn
for n = 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6
can be combined with translational
symmetry, sometimes in more than
one way. Thus these 10 groups give
rise to 17
wallpaper groups.
More complex symmetries arise
in 3D, see
point groups in three dimensions.
In any dimension, d, the
continuous group of all possible
fixed point isometries is the
orthogonal group, denoted
by O(d); and its continuous
subgroup of all possible rotations
is the special orthogonal group,
denoted by SO(d). This is
not
Schönflies notation, but the
conventional names from
Lie group theory.