Rotational symmetry

Rotational symmetry, also known as radial symmetry in geometry, is the property a shape has when
it looks the same after some rotation by a partial turn. An object's degree of rotational symmetry is
the number of distinct orientations in which it looks exactly the same for each rotation.

The triskelion appearing on the Isle of

Man flag has rotational symmetry
because it appears the same when
rotated by one third of a full turn
about its center. Because its
appearance is identical in three
distinct orientations, its rotational
symmetry is three-fold.

Certain geometric objects are partially symmetrical when rotated at certain angles such as squares
rotated 90°, however the only geometric objects that are fully rotationally symmetric at any angle
are spheres, circles and other spheroids.[1][2]

Formal treatment

Formally the rotational symmetry is symmetry with respect to some or all rotations in m-
dimensional Euclidean space. Rotations are direct isometries, i.e., isometries preserving orientation.
Therefore, a symmetry group of rotational symmetry is a subgroup of E +(m) (see Euclidean group).

Symmetry with respect to all rotations about all points implies translational symmetry with respect
to all translations, so space is homogeneous, and the symmetry group is the whole E(m). With the
modified notion of symmetry for vector fields the symmetry group can also be E +(m).

For symmetry with respect to rotations about a point we can take that point as origin. These
rotations form the special orthogonal group SO(m), the group of m × m orthogonal matrices with
determinant 1. For m = 3 this is the rotation group SO(3).

In another definition of the word, the rotation group of an object is the symmetry group within E +(n),
the group of direct isometries; in other words, the intersection of the full symmetry group and the
group of direct isometries. For chiral objects it is the same as the full symmetry group.

Laws of physics are SO(3)-invariant if they do not distinguish different directions in space. Because
of Noether's theorem, the rotational symmetry of a physical system is equivalent to the angular
momentum conservation law.

Discrete rotational symmetry

Rotational symmetry of order n, also called n-fold rotational symmetry, or discrete rotational
symmetry of the nth order, with respect to a particular point (in 2D) or axis (in 3D) means that

rotation by an angle of ⁠ ⁠(180°, 120°, 90°, 72°, 60°, 51 3⁄7°, etc.) does not change the object. A "1-
fold" symmetry is no symmetry (all objects look alike after a rotation of 360°).

The notation for n-fold symmetry is Cn or simply n. The actual symmetry group is specified by the
point or axis of symmetry, together with the n. For each point or axis of symmetry, the abstract
group type is cyclic group of order n, Zn. Although for the latter also the notation Cn is used, the
geometric and abstract Cn should be distinguished: there are other symmetry groups of the same
abstract group type which are geometrically different, see cyclic symmetry groups in 3D.

The fundamental domain is a sector of ⁠ ⁠

Examples without additional reflection symmetry:

n = 2, 180°: the dyad; letters Z, N, S; the outlines, albeit not the colors, of the yin and yang symbol;
the Union Flag (as divided along the flag's diagonal and rotated about the flag's center point)

n = 3, 120°: triad, triskelion, Borromean rings; sometimes the term trilateral symmetry is used;

n = 4, 90°: tetrad, swastika

n = 6, 60°: hexad, Star of David (this one has additional reflection symmetry)

n = 8, 45°: octad, Octagonal muqarnas, computer-generated (CG), ceiling

Cn is the rotation group of a regular n-sided polygon in 2D and of a regular n-sided pyramid in 3D.

If there is e.g. rotational symmetry with respect to an angle of 100°, then also with respect to one of
20°, the greatest common divisor of 100° and 360°.
A typical 3D object with rotational symmetry (possibly also with perpendicular axes) but no mirror
symmetry is a propeller.

Examples

C2 (more) C3 (more) C4 (more) C5 (more) C6 (more)

US Bicentennial
Roundabout traffic sign
Double Pendulum Star
fractal

Snoldelev Stone's interlocked

The starting
drinking horns design
position in shogi

Multiple symmetry axes through the same point

For discrete symmetry with multiple symmetry axes through the same point, there are the following
possibilities:

In addition to an n-fold axis, n perpendicular 2-fold axes: the dihedral groups Dn of order 2n
(n ≥ 2). This is the rotation group of a regular prism, or regular bipyramid. Although the same
notation is used, the geometric and abstract Dn should be distinguished: there are other
symmetry groups of the same abstract group type which are geometrically different, see dihedral
symmetry groups in 3D.

4×3-fold and 3×2-fold axes: the rotation group T of order 12 of a regular tetrahedron. The group is
isomorphic to alternating group A4.

3×4-fold, 4×3-fold, and 6×2-fold axes: the rotation group O of order 24 of a cube and a regular
octahedron. The group is isomorphic to symmetric group S4.

6×5-fold, 10×3-fold, and 15×2-fold axes: the rotation group I of order 60 of a dodecahedron and an
icosahedron. The group is isomorphic to alternating group A5. The group contains 10 versions of
 D3 and 6 versions of D5 (rotational symmetries like prisms and antiprisms).

In the case of the Platonic solids, the 2-fold axes are through the midpoints of opposite edges, and
the number of them is half the number of edges. The other axes are through opposite vertices and
through centers of opposite faces, except in the case of the tetrahedron, where the 3-fold axes are
each through one vertex and the center of one face.

Rotational symmetry with respect to any angle

Rotational symmetry with respect to any angle is, in two dimensions, circular symmetry. The
fundamental domain is a half-line.

In three dimensions we can distinguish cylindrical symmetry and spherical symmetry (no change
when rotating about one axis, or for any rotation). That is, no dependence on the angle using
cylindrical coordinates and no dependence on either angle using spherical coordinates. The
fundamental domain is a half-plane through the axis, and a radial half-line, respectively.
Axisymmetric and axisymmetrical are adjectives which refer to an object having cylindrical
symmetry, or axisymmetry (i.e. rotational symmetry with respect to a central axis) like a doughnut
(torus). An example of approximate spherical symmetry is the Earth (with respect to density and
other physical and chemical properties).

In 4D, continuous or discrete rotational symmetry about a plane corresponds to corresponding 2D

rotational symmetry in every perpendicular plane, about the point of intersection. An object can also
have rotational symmetry about two perpendicular planes, e.g. if it is the Cartesian product of two
rotationally symmetry 2D figures, as in the case of e.g. the duocylinder and various regular
duoprisms.

Rotational symmetry with translational symmetry

2-fold rotational symmetry together with single translational symmetry is one of the Frieze groups.
A rotocenter is the fixed, or invariant, point of a rotation.[3] There are two rotocenters per primitive
cell.

Together with double translational symmetry the rotation groups are the following wallpaper groups,
with axes per primitive cell:

p2 (2222): 4×2-fold; rotation group of a parallelogrammic, rectangular, and rhombic lattice.

 p3 (333): 3×3-fold; not the rotation group
of any lattice (every lattice is upside-
down the same, but that does not apply
for this symmetry); it is e.g. the rotation
group of the regular triangular tiling with
the equilateral triangles alternatingly
Arrangement within a primitive cell of 2-,
colored.
3-, and 6-fold rotocenters, alone or in
Arrangement within a
p4 (442): 2×4-fold, 2×2-fold; rotation combination (consider the 6-fold symbol
primitive cell of 2- and
group of a square lattice. as a combination of a 2- and a 3-fold
4-fold rotocenters. A
symbol); in the case of 2-fold symmetry
fundamental domain
p6 (632): 1×6-fold, 2×3-fold, 3×2-fold; only, the shape of the parallelogram can be
is indicated in yellow.
rotation group of a hexagonal lattice. different. For the case p6, a fundamental
domain is indicated in yellow.
2-fold rotocenters (including possible 4-
fold and 6-fold), if present at all, form the
translate of a lattice equal to the translational lattice, scaled by a factor 1/2. In the case
translational symmetry in one dimension, a similar property applies, though the term "lattice" does
not apply.

3-fold rotocenters (including possible 6-fold), if present at all, form a regular hexagonal lattice
equal to the translational lattice, rotated by 30° (or equivalently 90°), and scaled by a factor

4-fold rotocenters, if present at all, form a regular square lattice equal to the translational lattice,
rotated by 45°, and scaled by a factor

6-fold rotocenters, if present at all, form a regular hexagonal lattice which is the translate of the
translational lattice.

Scaling of a lattice divides the number of points per unit area by the square of the scale factor.
Therefore, the number of 2-, 3-, 4-, and 6-fold rotocenters per primitive cell is 4, 3, 2, and 1,
respectively, again including 4-fold as a special case of 2-fold, etc.

3-fold rotational symmetry at one point and 2-fold at another one (or ditto in 3D with respect to
parallel axes) implies rotation group p6, i.e. double translational symmetry and 6-fold rotational
symmetry at some point (or, in 3D, parallel axis). The translation distance for the symmetry
generated by one such pair of rotocenters is times their distance.
 Euclidean plane Hyperbolic plane

Order 3-7 kisrhombille,

an example of [7,3]+
(732) symmetry and
[7,3], (*732) (without
colors)
Hexakis triangular tiling, an example of p6, [6,3]+, (632)
(with colors) and p6m, [6,3], (*632) (without colors); the
lines are reflection axes if colors are ignored, and a
special kind of symmetry axis if colors are not ignored:
reflection reverts the colors. Rectangular line grids in
three orientations can be distinguished.

See also

Ambigram

Axial symmetry

Crystallographic restriction theorem

Lorentz symmetry

Point groups in three dimensions

Screw axis

Space group

Translational symmetry

References

1. Rotational symmetry of Weingarten spheres in homogeneous three-manifolds. By Jos ́e A. G ́alvez, Pablo

Mira (https://arxiv.org/pdf/1807.09654.pdf)

2. Topological Bound States in the Continuum in Arrays of Dielectric Spheres. By Dmitrii N. Maksimov, LV
Kirensky Institute of Physics, Krasnoyarsk, Russia (https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Dmitrii-Maksimo
v/publication/317939298_Topological_Bound_States_in_the_Continuum_in_Arrays_of_Dielectric_Spheres/
 links/5a58a612aca2725b780773f5/Topological-Bound-States-in-the-Continuum-in-Arrays-of-Dielectric-Sp
heres.pdf)

3. Loeb, A.L. (1971). Color and Symmetry, Wiley-Interscience, New York, p.2. ISBN 9780471543350,
OCLC 163904 (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/163904)

Weyl, Hermann (1982) [1952]. Symmetry. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-
02374-3.

External links

Media related to Rotational symmetry at Wikimedia Commons

Rotational Symmetry Examples (http://www.mathsisfun.com/geometry/symmetry-rotational.htm

l) from Math Is Fun