University of Montana ScholarWorks at University of Montana

Syllabi Course Syllabi

9-2002

GEOL 520.01: Optical Mineralogy

Donald W. Hyndman University of Montana - Missoula

Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umt.edu/syllabi Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y

Recommended Citation Hyndman, Donald W., "GEOL 520.01: Optical Mineralogy" (2002). Syllabi. 3213. https://scholarworks.umt.edu/syllabi/3213

This Syllabus is brought to you for free and open access by the Course Syllabi at ScholarWorks at University of Montana. It has been accepted for inclusion in Syllabi by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at University of Montana. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Geology 520 - Optical Mineralogy Don Hyndman

A useful lab manual for future use in petroqraphic study of minerals W.E. Troger, Optical determination of the Rock-forming minerals, Part 1. Determinative Tables English Edition, 1980 [An excellent lab manual for properties of minerals in thin section, including block diagrams of optical properties of most common rock-forming minerals]

Texts for understanding the principles and techniques of Optical Mineralogy [less likely to be of use after having taken 520 - copies available in the lab] W.R. Phillips and D.T. Griffen, 1981, Optical Mineralogy. W.H. Freeman & Co. E.G. Ehlers, 1987, Optical Mineralogy, vol. 1 Theory and Techniques, Blackwell Scientific W.D. Nesse, 1991, Introduction to Optical Mineralogy, 2nd ed., Oxford Univ. Press.

Topics covered in the course (in order) •Characteristics of light, reflection, refraction, dispersion •Isotropic materials, measurement of index of refraction, use of refractometers. •Uniaxial crystals, indices of refraction, vibration directions, measurement of indices. •Interference and birefringence, measurement, retardation •Interference figures: uniaxial characteristics and use; centered and off-center, sign •Biaxial indicatrix, interference figures •Extinction angle, relationship to crystallographic directions, measurement •Pleochroism, abnormal interference colors •Measurement of plagioclase compositions by R.I., X’A010 |a, combined carlsbad-albite, bisectrix (| X, | Z) methods

•Handouts: Common isotropic, uniaxial, biaxial minerals identification of minerals

************************************************************************ Final exam is practical only. It has three parts: 1. Identify the common rock-forming minerals in a thin-section you have not seen fore. 2. Work out the optical properties (and draw a block diagram showing them) of an unknown mineral in thin section. The properties include: 2V, ZAC, cleavages, pleochroism, dispersion. 3. Determine the composition of plagioclase in a thin-section, recording the measurements and method used.