Industrial growth, morphology, and some properties of bi-colored amethyst-citrine quartz (ametrine)

by

V.S. Balitsky¹, I.B. Machina², A.A. Mar'in², J.E. Shigley³, G.R. Rossman⁴, T. Lu^3
1Institute of Experimental Mineralogy, Russian Academy of Sciences, Chernogolovka, Moscow Region, Russia
²Russian Research Institute for Material Synthesis, Alexandrov, Vladimir Region, Russia
³Gemological Institute of America, Carlsbad, CA   92008
⁴California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA   91125

  Journal of Crystal Growth 212, 255-260.

Abstract

In the middle of the 1990's the first industrial technology for producing synthetic bi-colored amethyst-citrine quartz (ametrine) was created. The technology is based on results of studies of the effect of different physical-chemical and growth factors on the formation, stability and the character of the distribution in crystals of amethyst and citrine color centers.

Figure 2

Distribution of amethyst and citrine colors in different growth sectors of synthetic ametrine crystals grown on seeds parallel to the basal pinacoid (0001).

Figure 4

Typical commercial ametrine crystals, grown on the seed parallel to the basal pinacoid, and cross sections from a similar crystal.

Page revised 15 Mar 2001.