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Version 4 Support
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Diamond Version 4 Features

The following gives you an overview of the new features of Diamond version 4 - as compared with version 3.x. Please note that some functions will be (or have been) released in minor updates 4.1, 4.2 etc. These minor updates are free-of-charge for customers of Diamond 4.x. For a list of new functions and their planned releases, check the "New functions" table.

Start the feature tour here - or directly step to the features you are interested in via the links below.

>> Start feature tour >>

Automatic and batch structure picture creation:
See the new "Auto Picture Creator" docking pane that automatically applies changes in building options, picture design and viewing direction directly to the structure picture, and the new "design schemes" that serve as a kind of style sheets that let you easily convert your structure picture for presentation or publication.

Enhanced productivity:
Read about the new working modes in Diamond 4, the "Grab mode" for more intuitive rotation, shifting or zooming during exploration of a crystal or molecular structure, the "Neighbouring preview" of atoms and molecules around the atom (bond, molecule) under mouse cursor, with several options to use the mouse wheel to change properties (enlargement factor, zoom in/out, change atom radii) or to change surroundings (blow up polyhedra, expand molecule cluster, etc.) ("Mouse wheeling").

Extended functionality for molecules and polymers:
Get an overview of the several options to create a packing diagram (cell range, sphere, slab, or slice of molecules), about the support of non-bonding contacts and the improved handling of H-bonds. And there are several new functions to be applied on big molecules or organic and inorganic polymers as well (expansion of molecular clusters, growing or cutting of polymeric frameworks, pumping up of inorganic frameworks).

New polyhedron functions:
The "Atomic environment" of an atom site each serves as new optional criterion to define the coordination polyhedron's atoms (or a coordination sphere). There will be several functions to construct polyhedra with rather complicated geometry, such as construction from atoms or bonds, combination or splitting of polyhedron faces by clicking, copy and paste of polyhedra between atoms of same site. And see how Voronoi polyhedra are constructed.

Searching for structure data:
Read about access to the crystal structure database COD ("Crystallography Open Database") including (amongst others) AMCSD ("American Mineralogist Crystal Structure Database") as well as CIF files from the IUCr journals.

Improved user interface:
See the new or improved user interface elements that allow a better integration and correlation of the different views (structure picture, tables, powder pattern, etc.). Read about enhanced possibilities to preview, resize, and arrange structure picture thumbnails, about color coding of structural parameter sets, the new docking windows "Recent Pictures" and "Undo Buffer", the new "Atom list" data pane, the table of created molecules, and the possibility to view your structure picture in full screen view.

More new features:
Animated POV-Ray pictures or video sequences from POV-Ray pictures, support for disorder parts, improved mixed sites representation, export of 3D scene into OBJ and STL format. (User-defined symmetry and visualization of symmetry elements, bond valences, and calculation of powder pattern using Debye formula to come in minor updates 4.7 or higher.)


Features already available since Diamond version 3

To read about more features that are not new in version 4 but were introduced with the previous version 3, please follow this link:

Go To Diamond Version 3 Feature Tour...