Electron-diffraction is a term used to describe a process where an electron beam is directed towards a sample, causing interference patterns to form. This technique is commonly used in materials science and chemistry applications to study the properties of materials at a microscopic level. Synonyms for electron diffraction include electron crystallography, electron scattering, and electron microscopy. Electron crystallography is often used to describe the patterning of electrons to study the structure of crystals, while electron scattering is a term used to describe the study of the scattering of electrons by matter. Electron microscopy is a more general term used to describe any form of microscopy that uses electron beams instead of light.