The Classification and Formation of Crystals My purpose of this experiment is to find out how crystals are formed and how they are classified. For a long time, I’ve been interested in crystals, so I’ ve decided this experiment would be perfect for me! Crystallography The study of the growth, shape, and geometric characteristics of crystals is called crystallography. When the conditions are right, each chemical element and compound can crystallize in a definite and characteristic form. Thirty-two classes of crystals are theoretically possible, almost all common minerals fall into one of about twelv