left by hcp and fcc conformations; tetrahedral and octahedral void. Four spheres surround the tetrahedral hole with three spheres being in one layer and one sphere from the next layer. Six spheres surround an octahedral voids with three spheres coming from one layer and three spheres coming from the next layer. Structures of many simple chemical compounds, for instance, are often described in terms of small atoms occupying tetrahedral or octahedral holes in closed-packed systems that are formed from larger atoms. Layered structures are formed by alternating empty and filled octahedral planes. Two octahedral layers usually allow for four structural arrangements that can either be filled by an hpc of fcc packing systems. In filling tetrahedral holes a complete filling leads to fcc field array. In unit cells, hole filling can sometimes lead to polyhedral arrays with a mix of hcp and fcc layering. See also Cubic crystal system Hermite constant Random close pack Sphere packing Cylinder sphere packing Notes External links P. Krishna & D. Pandey, "Close-Packed Structures" International Union of Crystallography by University College Cardiff Press. Cardiff, Wales. PDF Discrete geometry Crystallography Packing problems Spheres