germanite
Sign in to saveGermanite is a rare copper iron germanium sulfide mineral, Cu26Fe4Ge4S32. It was first discovered in 1922, and named for its germanium content. It is only a minor source of this important semiconductor element, which is mainly derived from the processing of the zinc sulfide mineral sphalerite. Germanite contains gallium, zinc, molybdenum, arsenic, and vanadium as impurities.
Key facts
- Mineral.imagesize
- 260
- Mineral.name
- Germanite
- Mineral.category
- Sulfide mineral
- Mineral.image
- Germanite-231229.jpg
- Mineral.caption
- Germanite, probably from the Tsumeb Mine, Oshikoto Region, Namibia.
- Mineral.formula
- Cu26Ge4Fe4S32
- Mineral.IMAsymbol
- Ger
- Mineral.strunz
- 2.CB.30
- Mineral.dana
- 2.9.4.2
- Mineral.system
- Isometric
- Mineral.class
- Hextetrahedral (3m) H-M symbol: ( 3m)
- Mineral.symmetry
- P3n
- Mineral.color
- Reddish grey tarnishing to dark brown
- Mineral.habit
- Usually massive; rarely as minute cubic crystals
- Mineral.cleavage
- None
- Mineral.tenacity
- Brittle
- Mineral.mohs
- 4
- Mineral.luster
- Metallic
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Image
- Germanite-231229.jpg
Show 7 more facts
- chemical formula
- Cu₁₃Fe₂Ge₂S₁₆
- Nickel-Strunz 9th edition (updated 2009)
- 2.CB.30
- Nickel-Strunz '10th ed', review of (9th ed/ 2009 update)
- 2.CB.30
- Commons category
- Germanite
- Mohs' hardness
- 3
- IMA Mineral Symbol
- Ger
- Strunz 8th edition (series ID, updated)
- II/B.03c
Sources (2)
via Wikidata · CC0
~1 min read
Article
1 sectionsContents
- References
Germanite is a rare copper iron germanium sulfide mineral, Cu26Fe4Ge4S32. It was first discovered in 1922, and named for its germanium content. It is only a minor source of this important semiconductor element, which is mainly derived from the processing of the zinc sulfide mineral sphalerite. Germanite contains gallium, zinc, molybdenum, arsenic, and vanadium as impurities.
Its type locality is the Tsumeb Mine in Namibia where it occurs in a hydrothermal polymetallic ore deposit in dolomite in association with renierite, pyrite, tennantite, enargite, galena, sphalerite, digenite, bornite and chalcopyrite. It has also been reported from Argentina, Armenia, Bulgaria, Cuba, Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaire), Finland, France, Greece, Japan, Republic of Congo (Brazzaville), Russia and the United States.