The nanostructure of fire opal

Research areas:

• Surfaces planétaires (2011 - 2016)

Year:

2006

Authors:

• E. Fritsch
• E. Gaillou
• Benjamin Rondeau
• A. Barreau
• D. Albertini
• M. Ostroumov

Journal:

JOURNAL OF NON-CRYSTALLINE SOLIDS

Volume:

352

Number:

38-39

Pages:

3957-3960

Month:

OCT 15

ISSN:

0022-3093

BibTex:

@article{WOS:000241479200001, author = "E. Fritsch and E. Gaillou and Benjamin Rondeau and A. Barreau and D. Albertini and M. Ostroumov", abstract = "Fire opal, a transparent orange variety of opal, which does not diffract visible light, is built from the random accumulation of granular particles of hydrated silica, about 20 nm in size. This opal variety does not present the structure most commonly associated with precious opal, that is, a regular three-dimensional network of amorphous silica spheres about 200 nm in diameter. About 60 samples (from Mexico, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Slovakia and USA) were documented using scanning electron and atomic force microscopy. This work demonstrates that nanograins are the elementary building blocks of this variety of opal. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.", doi = "10.1016/j.noncrysol.2006.08.005", extra = "PICL", issn = "0022-3093", journal = "JOURNAL OF NON-CRYSTALLINE SOLIDS", month = "OCT 15", number = "38-39", pages = "3957-3960", title = "{T}he nanostructure of fire opal", volume = "352", year = "2006", }

Abstract:

Fire opal, a transparent orange variety of opal, which does not diffract
visible light, is built from the random accumulation of granular
particles of hydrated silica, about 20 nm in size. This opal variety
does not present the structure most commonly associated with precious
opal, that is, a regular three-dimensional network of amorphous silica
spheres about 200 nm in diameter. About 60 samples (from Mexico, Brazil,
Kazakhstan, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Slovakia and USA) were documented using
scanning electron and atomic force microscopy. This work demonstrates
that nanograins are the elementary building blocks of this variety of
opal. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.