International School on Fundamental Crystallography and Workshop on Rietveld Refinement Analysis (ISFC-2026)

The “International School on Fundamental Crystallography and Workshop on Rietveld Refinement Analysis” (ISFC-2026) was held at the Department of Physics & Astronomy, National Institute of Technology (NIT) Rourkela, India from 23rd to 28th February 2026. This was the 3rd event in India in which the Commission on Mathematical and Theoretical Crystallography (IUCr MaThCryst) was directly involved in the organization. The 1st one was organized on the topic “Symmetry relationships between crystal structures with application to structural phase transitions” at Indian Institute of Technology (Banaras Hindu University) (IIT, BHU), Banaras, India, during 27th to 31st October 2014. The 2nd school, titled “Fundamental Crystallography and Workshop on Structural Phase Transitions: A Satellite meeting of 24th IUCr Congress, 2017” (ISFCWSPT-2017) was held at the Department of Physics & Astronomy, National Institute of Technology (NIT) Rourkela, India from 30th August to 4th September 2017.

The school commenced with a brief inaugural session on 23rd February 2026 at 09:00 AM. During the session, the Director, Dean SRICCE, and Registrar of National Institute of Technology Rourkela welcomed the speakers and participants and provided an overview of the Institute. The Head of the Department of Physics & Astronomy, National Institute of Technology Rourkela, also presented a brief overview of the Department. Dr. Dillip K. Pradhan, Coordinator of the School, highlighted the objectives of the program and emphasized the importance of the School and workshop for the participants.

The main focus of the event was to provide an understanding of the fundamentals of crystallography and the implementation of Rietveld refinement analysis of powder diffraction data of functional materials such as ferroics and multiferroics. The scientific program was divided into two parts. The first part of the program was the School on Fundamental Crystallography, which included 14 lectures (25 hours) conducted during the first three and a half days. These lectures covered fundamental crystallographic topics starting from crystallographic symmetry and its application to two- and three-dimensional crystallographic point and space groups, symmetry relations between space groups including group-subgroup and group-supergroup relationships, crystal-structure descriptions and comparison. The second part focused on Rietveld Refinement Analysis and consisted of 10 lectures, including tutorials, hands-on training, and practical sessions, totaling 19 hours. The last two and a half days were devoted to discussions on reciprocal-space construction and diffraction, X-ray powder diffraction, theoretical basis as well as strategy of Rietveld refinement analysis. The lecture sessions were complemented by hands-on practical sessions on space groups descriptions in Volume A of International Tables for Crystallography and online training for determination of subgroups of space groups and their applications in crystal-structure relations and comparisons using Bilbao Crystallographic Server (freely available). The workshop on Rietveld refinement analysis was also based on intensive hands-on sessions using the computer programs of the Full Prof Suite (freely available).

All the lectures were taken by renowned experts in the field such as Prof. Massimo Nespolo, Université de Lorraine, Nancy, France, Prof. Mois Ilia Aroyo, Universidad del País Vasco, Bilbao, Spain (online), Prof. Juan Rodríguez-Carvajal, Institut Laue-Langevin, Grenoble, France, Prof. Claire V. Colin, Institut Néel - CNRS & UGA, Grenoble, France, Dr. Gemma de la Flor Martín, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany (online), Dr. Dillip K. Pradhan, National Institute of Technology Rourkela, Odisha, India, Dr. Ranjana R. Das, Government Autonomous College, Rourkela, Odisha, India. The tutorials, hands-on training, and practical sessions were conducted by Dr. Dillip K. Pradhan, Dr. Ranjana R. Das, Dr. Anupam Mishra, National Institute of Technology Rourkela, Odisha, India and Dr. Anusree V. K., R Sankar Memorial SNDP Yogam Arts & Science College, Koyilandy, Kerala, India.

The school was attended by postgraduate students, research scholars, young faculty members, and scientists working in R&D sectors who were passionate about understanding fundamental crystallography and its application in Rietveld refinement analysis. This made the school truly interdisciplinary, with contributions from both theoretical and experimental physicists as well as materials scientists. The school witnessed the participation of 62 attendees, including 17 local participants, along with nine speakers and tutors. The organizers also arranged interaction sessions between the speakers and participants during refreshment breaks. The participants, especially the Ph.D. scholars and Master’s students, showed great enthusiasm in interacting with the speakers to clarify their doubts and deepen their understanding of the subject. For many students, this was their first experience attending an international school on crystallography and learning mathematical crystallography related to Rietveld refinement analysis. The program provided an excellent opportunity for the participants to understand both the fundamental concepts and advanced applications of the subject through lectures, discussions, and interactive sessions. The school aimed to create a lasting impact on the participants by motivating them to advance crystallography research and contribute to quality scientific publications through the dissemination of their findings. Several postgraduate students at the early stage of their academic careers benefited significantly from the School and workshop, and many of them have already begun exploring this fascinating field of crystallography in greater depth.

The school concluded with a formal valedictory session, during which pleasantries were exchanged, the speakers were honoured, and certificates were distributed to the participants by the local organizing committee. Some of the participants also shared their experiences during the School and expressed their enthusiasm to pursue their research careers in the field of crystallography. All the speakers appreciated the organization of the School and expressed their happiness regarding the active interactions with the young participants.
 
This School would not have been successful without the unconditional support of the speakers, their commitment, and, above all, their timely suggestions and guidance. We are sincerely thankful to the sponsors of the School and workshop, namely the International Union of Crystallography (IUCr), Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF), and Board of Research in Nuclear Sciences (BRNS), for their generous financial support, which was instrumental in making this event possible. Special thanks go to the International Union of Crystallography for providing generous sponsorship support for young scientists and travel support for visiting professors, which played a vital role in the success of the event. Most of the young participants also received partial support for accommodation and food expenses.
This School and workshop provided an ideal platform for the participants to establish academic relationships with renowned international speakers, reputed national experts, and researchers from various disciplines. The conclusion of the School and workshop marked the beginning of many new horizons in crystallography that remain to be explored and investigated by the participants. It is hoped that this event will open diverse and advanced avenues of knowledge in the field of crystallography and contribute significantly to the development of a strong and vibrant crystallography ecosystem in India.

The organizers plan to host another Mathematical and Theoretical Crystallography School and workshop on some more advanced aspect of Crystallography in India in near future.