High-Resolution Synchrotron Chemical Microanalytical Characterization of Beryl to Determine Relation to Color
Grant
Overview
abstract
-
Colored beryl varieties are caused by impurities of chromophore elements, but very fine-scale chemical zoning in crystals is little known. Frontier analytical techniques can test the limits of chemical zoning not visible via traditional techniques1,2. Preliminary analyses via synchrotron X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy in beryl crystals show chemical variation bands 10 micrometers thick and correlation with color zones (Fig. 1)1. The goal of this study is to elucidate the relationship between fine-scale chemical variations of chromophores and color zoning in individual beryl crystals and improve detection of chemical zoning in crystals. The hypothesis is that relative abundances of chromophore elements correlate with color and that intra-crystal chemical zoning continues beyond 10 micrometers and what is visible by other techniques. The objective is to compare variations of chromophores in individual beryl crystals with visual color zoning and to determine the smallest growth bands.
date/time interval
awarded by