A step closer to predicting the bonding geometry of crystals

A recent paper in this journal by Bickmore et al. (2013, Amer. Min., 98, 340–349) describes an important extension of the bond-valence model that allows us to predict the size of the distortions found in the environment of atoms with electronic anisotropies, paving the way for a quantitative prediction of bond lengths and angles around these atoms.