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Updated: Jul 22, 2026

Diffuse Reflectance Infrared Spectroscopic Identification of Dispersant/Particle Bonding Mechanisms in Functional Inks
Published on: May 8, 2015
An infrared spectral match between GEMS and interstellar grains
J P Bradley1, L P Keller, T P Snow
1MVA Inc., Norcross, GA 30093, USA.
Abstract:
Infrared spectral properties of silicate grains in interplanetary dust particles (IDPs) were compared with those of astronomical silicates. The approximately 10-micrometer silicon-oxygen stretch bands of IDPs containing enstatite (MgSiO3), forsterite (Mg2SiO4), and glass with embedded metal and sulfides (GEMS) exhibit fine structure and bandwidths similar to those of solar system comets and some pre-main sequence Herbig Ae/Be stars. Some GEMS exhibit a broad, featureless silicon-oxygen stretch band similar to those observed in interstellar molecular clouds and young stellar objects. These GEMS provide a spectral match to astronomical "amorphous" silicates, one of the fundamental building blocks from which the solar system is presumed to have formed.
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