Report by Shuchi Giridhar
A new mineral named davemaoite, named after the well-known geophysicist Ho Kwang (Dave) Mao, has been found in diamond.
This mineral is the first specimen of a high-pressure calcium silicate perovskite (CaSiO3) found on the earth.
Wollastonite, another form of CaSiO3, unlike davemaoite, is found all over the earth, but davemaoite has a crystalline form that forms only under high pressure and temperature in the mantle layer of the planet.
The mineral has long been anticipated to be geochemically important and abundantly present in the mantle. Yet, scientists have never found any proper evidence of its existence till now.
Analyzing the diamond from Botswana, which formed in the mantle around 410 miles (660 kilometers) under the Earth’s surface, has unveiled a sample of intact davemaoite, resulting in the Mineralogical Association confirming davemaoite as a new mineral.
Oliver Tschauner, a mineralogist at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas, said that the discovery of davemaoite came as quite a surprise.
He and his team used a method called synchrotron x-ray diffraction to uncover the sample in the diamond. The method centers a high-energy x-ray beam on special spots in the diamond with microscopic precision. Tsauner also said that by measuring the intensity and angle of the returning light, scientists can find out what is inside.
Davemaoite is said to play a significant geochemical role in the earth’s mantle. Scientists also theorize that davemaoite contains other trace elements such as uranium and thorium.