twinning, in crystallography, regular intergrowth of two or more crystal grains so that each grain is a reflected image of its neighbour or is rotated with respect to it. Other grains added to the twin form crystals that often appear symmetrically joined, sometimes in a starlike or crosslike shape.
Twinning often occurs from the beginning of crystal growth. The individuals that comprise a twin have atomic structures with different orientations, but they must have certain common planes or directions. They must fit simply and must be derived from each other by a simple movement.
Some geometric relations concerning crystal twinning can be set down. Twinning results in reflected images along a common twinning plane, repetitions rotated about a common twinning axis, or both. Such twinning planes and axes have simple relations to the crystallographic axes of the crystal and are governed by some fundamental laws; e.g., because the resulting twin would be identical to the original crystal, no plane of symmetry in the simple crystal may become a twinning plane, and no axis of 2-, 4-, or 6-fold symmetry may become a twinning axis; also, twinned crystals in classes with a centre of symmetry will have a twinning axis perpendicular to a twinning plane, but, lacking a centre of symmetry, a twinning axis or plane may occur independently.