Physical Properties |
|
| Chemical formula | CaMgSi2O6 |
| Class | Inosilicate Double chains of linked tetrahedra |
| Crystal system | Monoclinic |
| Habit | Prismatic Massive Finely disseminated |
| Color | Light green Variable |
| Hardness | 5.5 to 6.5 |
| Specific gravity | 3.2 to 3.5 |
| Cleavage | Two perfect prismatic {1101} |
| Fracture | Uneven |
| Luster | Vitreous |
| Transparency | Transparent to translucent |
| Streak | White Gray |
Optical Properties |
|
| PPL | Colorless if Fe-free Non-pleochroic if Fe-free Green if Fe Brown if Fe Pleochroic if Fe |
| XPL | 3rd order colors Prismatic or blocky grains |
| δ | 0.030 |
| Twinning | Polysynthetic are common |
| Extinction | Inclined |
| after Perkins, 327 |
Diopside in Hand Sample
Diopside
Green diopside with red and white calcite
Diopside in Thin Section
Thin Section GigaPans
Diopside in plane polars
Diopside in crossed polars
Diopside, Plane Polars
Diopside in plane polarized light. Magnification: 40x To view this mineral in crossed polars, click here: https://youtu.be/bL3I88KfwPk Click here to explore …
Diopside, Crossed Polars
Diopside in cross polarized light. Magnification: 40x To view this mineral in plane polars, click here: https://youtu.be/6EogK124O9M To explore a gigapan of …