Optical Mineralogy

Lab 13 Fall, 2012

Uniaxial Interference Figures

Conoscopic Observation
In order to observe an interference figure
the microscope must be used in the
conoscopic mode
Conoscopic refers to the cone-shaped
illumination obtained when the condenser
lens is near the thin section
This requires that the following conditions
be met
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Conoscopic Technique
A. Analyzer inserted and crossed with
respect to polarizer (CN)
B. Objective lens with a numerical aperture
(N.A.) 0.65 must be used
C. The condensing lens must be moved (or
swing-out lens inserted) to focus the light
on a small area
D. The Bertrand lens must be inserted
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Choosing a Grain
Choose a grain that stays in extinction or has
very low colors
You are trying to locate a grain with its optic
axis perpendicular to the slide
You want to be looking along the optic axis, or
as close as you can possibly get this produces a
centered optic axis figure
How close that is depends on the birefringence
of the mineral
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Choosing a Grain, II
For quartz, the grain must be almost black at all
times, for olivine, first-order gray will do
For calcite, any recognizable interference color
will probably work
Try to be at least in the lower 10% of the
mineral's color range
Sometimes you just can't do it with a given thin
section, especially if the mineral you're dealing
with has only tiny grains or very few of them
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Conoscopic vs. Orthoscopic

Observation
Diagram
compares
the two
types of
viewing

Conoscopic Procedure
Select a grain whose interference you wish to
check
Make sure the cover slip is facing up
Move the grain to the center of the stage
Be sure you are in CN (are the polars crossed?)
Focus at low power
Make sure you are not focused on a crack or
impurity in the grain
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Conoscopic Procedure, II
Increase to medium power, double check
focus
Move up to high power and double check
focus
Be sure to raise or flip in the auxiliary
condenser lens

Bertrand Lens

Insert the Bertrand lens

If your scope does not have a Bertrand
lens, remove the eyepiece and look down
the microscope tube
An interference figure should appear
rotate the stage to see if there is any
change
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No Interference Figure?

Check that the microscope is in the correct

configuration
Check that the grain on high power is not
focused on a crack or impurity
Also check that the high power objective
is properly centered

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Uniaxial Minerals
The optical class uniaxial has minerals from
two mineral systems:
Tetragonal A4
Hexagonal
o Rhombohedral division A3
o Hexagonal division A6

Each system has a unique high order axis, as

shown this is the optic axis
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Quadrant Labels
The quadrants are labeled
starting in the upper right
and going
counterclockwise
Roman numerals are used
to designate quadrants

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Optic Axis
The optic axis is designated as the
crystallographic Z axis
When a thin section of a mineral is cut
perpendicular to the optic axis, and then
viewed perpendicular to the thin section,
light is traveling along the optic axis
Light traveling in this direction experiences
a single index of refraction, (omega)
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Optic Axis Figures

The isogyre has 1 color; the area between the

isogyre arms is 1 white, unless isochromes are present
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Low vs. High Birefringence

Quartz, low birefringence

Calcite, high birefringence

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Origin of
Isogyres
Figure 21, page 28, W. W.
Moorhouse, The Study of Rocks in
Thin Section S marks the slow
ray (for the + case)

In conoscopic view, always vibrates to the z axis

and tangential to the isochromes, whereas always
vibrates to the isochromes
Whenever one of these vibration directions is parallel
to the polarizer (i.e., E-W), extinction occurs
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Origin of Isogyres, II
The two bands of extinction form a centered
cross for an optic axis section
The point where the isogyres meet is called
the melatope and represents the optic axis
itself
Melatope comes from Greek words
meaning dark and place
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Origin of
Isochromes

Light which travels along

the optic axis is not split
into two rays, nepsilon' = nomega,
and exits the mineral to
form the melatope
No retardation "between"
rays

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Origin of
Isochromes, II

Light following paths 2 & 4

experience moderate retardation
nepsilon' < nomega ~ 550 nm

Light following paths 3 & 5

experience moderate retardation
nepsilon' << nomega ~ 1100 nm because
light makes a larger angle with optic
axis and must take a longer path
through the sample

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Photomicrograph of HighBirefringence Mineral

The colored rings are
isochromes
Calcite highly
birefringent

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Accessory Plates
Accessory plates are plates of anisotropic
minerals ground to a thickness that gives a
particular retardation of light
When inserted into the light path, they
change the retardation of light coming
through the thin section by a specific
amount and the resultant interference color
helps to identify the mineral
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1o Red Accessory Plate

This is the compensator you will encounter most
frequently
The lab microscopes are equipped with one, and
we will use it extensively
The full wave plate is also called a gypsum plate,
1 plate, 550 nm plate, or 1o red plate (1o rot, in
German) because it is usually made of gypsum
and produces a 550 nm or 1o red retardation
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Quarter Wave Plate

This plate is found on your microscopes in lab, but
we do not use it extensively
As the name implies it produces a retardation of

It is also called a mica plate, 150 nm plate, and 1o

gray plate, because it is usually made of
muscovite (glimmer in German) and produces a
retardation of 150 nm, or 1o gray
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Quartz Wedge
This is a crystal of quartz cut into a wedge shaped
Since its thickness varies along the wedge, it can
produce a range of retardations that correspond to
interference colors from 0 (1o black) up to about
3800nm (5o green) - this varies from wedge to wedge
The wedge, like all compensators usually has its slow
direction clearly marked, and is inserted into the
microscope tube such that slow direction in the
compensator is at a 45o angle to the polarizing
direction

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Uniaxial Positive Sign

In a uniaxial mineral,
the two principle
indices of refraction
are denoted (epsilon)
and (omega)
If > , the mineral is
uniaxial positive

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Uniaxial Negative Sign

If < , the mineral is uniaxial negative

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Determination of the Optical Sign

Accessory plates may be used to determine
the optical sign
Minerals with isochromes are usually
treated differently than minerals without
isochromes

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Uniaxial Mineral, No Isochromes

The 1 red (Rot 1) plate is inserted
On most microscopes, this will be
from the SE
The slow direction of the accessory
plate (N) should be aligned NE-SW
A blue color appears in quadrants I
& III, which indicates addition
A yellow color in quadrants II & IV
indicates subtraction
This is a uniaxial positive mineral
with low birefringence
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Uniaxial Positive with 1 Red Plate

Uniaxial positive
mineral, with 1 red
plate
Note blue in quadrants
I & III, yellow in
quadrants II & IV
The isogyres show the
1 red color of the
accessory plate
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Uniaxial Mineral, No Isochromes

Figure 24b, page 30, W. W. Moorhouse, The Study of Rocks in Thin Section

A mica or quarter plate may be used for minerals with low to

moderate birefringence
It produces a pair of black dots in quadrants where subtraction
occurs
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Uniaxial Mineral, with Isochromes

The isochromes in quadrants
I &III move inward, and
those in quadrants II & IV
move outward
This is a uniaxial positive
mineral with moderate to
high birefringence

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Multiple Isochromes
If the interference figure displays numerous
isochromes, color changes produced with
the 1 red plate become difficult to detect
In this case the quartz wedge is used
Inserting the Quartz wedge results in the
movement of the isochromes about the
isogyres
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Use of the Quartz Wedge

In quadrants where the colors subtract, the
isochromes move outward as lower order colors
form near the melatope and displace higher order
colors
In quadrants where the colors add, the isochromes
move inwards, towards the melatope
The isogyre, on insertion of the accessory adopts
the interference color corresponding to the
retardation of the accessory
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Uniaxial Mineral, with

Isochromes, using Quartz Wedge

Left, positive; right, negative

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Uniaxial Mineral, No Isochromes

A blue color appears in
quadrants II & IV, which
indicates subtraction
A yellow color in quadrants
I & III indicates addition
This is a uniaxial negative
mineral with low
birefringence
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Uniaxial Mineral, with Isochromes

The isochromes in quadrants
I &III move outward, and
those in quadrants II & IV
move inward
This is a uniaxial negative
mineral with moderate to
high birefringence

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Uniaxial Negative with 1 Red Plate

Uniaxial negative
mineral, with 1 red
plate
Note blue in quadrants
II & IV, yellow in
quadrants I & III
The isogyres show the
1 red color of the
accessory plate
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Summary of Uniaxial Sign

Determination
The diagram
summarizes the
determination of
uniaxial signs using a
1o red plate

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Off-Center Figures
Finding a grain with the optic
axis oriented exactly
perpendicular to the stage will
sometimes be very difficult
It would be much more common
to find one wherein the optic
axis is at a slight angle to being
perpendicular to the microscope
stage
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Off-Center Figure Properties

Such a grain will exhibit the following
properties:
It is a grain that shows refractive index and
an ' refractive index that is close the
refractive index
It would also show very low order (1o gray
interference colors between extinction positions
if the analyzer is inserted in orthoscopic mode
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Off-Center Figure Diagram

On rotation of the stage, the melatope would rotate in

a circle around the perimeter of the field of view, and
the bars of the isogyres would remain oriented E-W
and N-S
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Rotation of an Off-center Figure

Figure 22, page
29, W. W.
Moorhouse, The
Study of Rocks
in Thin Section

42

Off-Center Orientation Diagram

The melatope lies outside the
field of view
The vibration direction of the
ordinary ray is tangential to
the isochromes
The vibration direction of the
extraordinary ray is radial
from the melatope
43

Photomicrographs of Off-Center
Figures

Thick Quartz Left 15 off center; Right 30 off center

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Positive Off-Center Figure

For an optically positive crystal, all NE and SW

quadrants will turn blue and the NW and SE
quadrants will turn yellow, both colors replacing
the 1ogray color present before insertion of the
compensator
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Negative Off-Center Figure

For an optically negative crystal, all NE and

SW quadrants will turn yellow and all NW
and SE quadrants will turn blue, both colors
replacing the 1ogray color present before
insertion of the compensator
46

Flash Figure
A mineral grain is oriented with it's optic
axis horizontal
This orientation exhibits the maximum
birefringence, for this mineral in the thin
section, and produces a flash figure

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Flash Figure II
The flash figure results because the
vibration directions, of the indicatrix, within
the field of view are nearly parallel to
polarization directions of the microscope
extraordinary rays vibrate parallel to optic axis
ordinary rays vibrate perpendicular to optic axis

48

Flash Figure III

With the grain at extinction, the optic axis is
oriented either EW or NS in the resulting
interference figure
The interference figure produced occupies most if
not all of the field of view and consists of a very
broad, fuzzy isogyres cross
Upon rotating the stage, < 5 rotation, the isogyres
will split and move out of the field of view in
opposite quadrants
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Flash Figure Diagram

Diagram showing flash figure
orientation, and a flash figure
image

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Flash Figure after Small Rotation

The isogyre splits and
quickly leaves the field of
view
The optic axis lies along the
line connecting the isogyres

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