IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v5y2014i1d10.1038_ncomms5040.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Impact-induced shock and the formation of natural quasicrystals in the early solar system

Author

Listed:
  • Lincoln S. Hollister

    (Princeton University, Guyot Hall)

  • Luca Bindi

    (Università di Firenze)

  • Nan Yao

    (Princeton Institute for the Science and Technology of Materials, Princeton University)

  • Gerald R. Poirier

    (Princeton Institute for the Science and Technology of Materials, Princeton University
    Present address: Advanced Material Characterization Laboratory, University of Delaware, Wilmington, North Carolina 19801, USA)

  • Christopher L. Andronicos

    (Purdue University)

  • Glenn J. MacPherson

    (National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution)

  • Chaney Lin

    (Princeton University, Jadwin Hall)

  • Vadim V. Distler

    (Institute of Geology of Ore Deposits, Petrography, Mineralogy, and Geochemistry (IGEM), Russian Academy of Sciences)

  • Michael P. Eddy

    (Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

  • Alexander Kostin

    (Geoscience Technology, BHP Billiton)

  • Valery Kryachko

    (Institute of Geology of Ore Deposits, Petrography, Mineralogy, and Geochemistry (IGEM), Russian Academy of Sciences)

  • William M. Steinhardt

    (Harvard University)

  • Marina Yudovskaya

    (Institute of Geology of Ore Deposits, Petrography, Mineralogy, and Geochemistry (IGEM), Russian Academy of Sciences)

  • John M. Eiler

    (California Institute of Technology)

  • Yunbin Guan

    (California Institute of Technology)

  • Jamil J. Clarke

    (Hitachi High Technologies America, Inc.)

  • Paul J. Steinhardt

    (Princeton University, Jadwin Hall
    Princeton Center for Theoretical Science, Princeton University)

Abstract

The discovery of a natural quasicrystal, icosahedrite (Al63Cu24Fe13), accompanied by khatyrkite (CuAl2) and cupalite (CuAl) in the CV3 carbonaceous chondrite Khatyrka has posed a mystery as to what extraterrestrial processes led to the formation and preservation of these metal alloys. Here we present a range of evidence, including the discovery of high-pressure phases never observed before in a CV3 chondrite, indicating that an impact shock generated a heterogeneous distribution of pressures and temperatures in which some portions reached at least 5 GPa and 1,200 °C. The conditions were sufficient to melt Al–Cu-bearing minerals, which then rapidly solidified into icosahedrite and other Al–Cu metal phases. The meteorite also contains heretofore unobserved phases of iron–nickel and iron sulphide with substantial amounts of Al and Cu. The presence of these phases in Khatyrka provides further proof that the Al–Cu alloys are natural products of unusual processes that occurred in the early solar system.

Suggested Citation

  • Lincoln S. Hollister & Luca Bindi & Nan Yao & Gerald R. Poirier & Christopher L. Andronicos & Glenn J. MacPherson & Chaney Lin & Vadim V. Distler & Michael P. Eddy & Alexander Kostin & Valery Kryachko, 2014. "Impact-induced shock and the formation of natural quasicrystals in the early solar system," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 5(1), pages 1-8, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:5:y:2014:i:1:d:10.1038_ncomms5040
    DOI: 10.1038/ncomms5040
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms5040
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/ncomms5040?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:5:y:2014:i:1:d:10.1038_ncomms5040. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.