Self-assembled nanocrystals discovered in Chelyabinsk meteorite
#MMPMID24594587
Pavlov DA
; Bobrov AI
; Malekhonova NV
; Pirogov AV
; Nezhdanov AV
Sci Rep
2014[Mar]; 4
(?): 4280
PMID24594587
show ga
Current interest in nanomaterials is focused mostly on artificial materials
fabricated for various applications. However, naturally occurring nanocrystal
arrays, like those recently found in the meteorite that fell near Chelyabinsk in
Russia on 15 February, 2013, can provide some new insights into the nature of
nanomaterials, including the conditions for their natural occurrence. Here we
report the results of our spectroscopic investigation of a fragment of the
Chelyabinsk meteorite. The atomic structure of a fragment of the Chelyabinsk
meteorite was studied using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy.
Elemental and phase analysis of the object that was carried out by energy
dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and electron diffraction revealed the presence of
crystalline phases of different chemical compounds specific to meteorites of the
LL group. In addition to single-crystal inclusions, extensive areas with
ferropericlase nanocrystals having characteristic sizes from 3 to 15?nm were
found in the structure of the meteorite. The study of the meteorite employing
combination scattering of light (Raman) and photoluminescence spectroscopy
methods has revealed quantum effects of ferropericlase nanoparticles and related
photoluminescence with a maximum in the range of 675-800?nm.
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