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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 12, 2026

$Synchrotron X-ray Microdiffraction and Fluorescence Imaging of Mineral and Rock Samples$

Synchrotron X-ray Microdiffraction and Fluorescence Imaging of Mineral and Rock Samples

Published on: June 19, 2018

Brilliant structural colors originating from reflection by nanogaps of nacreous layers in fossilized ammonite shells.

Naoki Hizukuri¹, Yuri Oshima¹, Yuta Yagi¹

¹School of Integrated Design Engineering, Faculty of Science and Technology, Keio University, 3-14-1 Hiyoshi, Kohoku-ku, Yokohama, 223-8522, Japan.

Scientific Reports

|October 31, 2025

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Vivid colors in Ammolite gemstones arise from nanoscopic gaps in fossilized nacre. These specific interlaminar nanogaps (around 4 nm) cause unique light interference, creating the gemstone

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Area of Science:

Paleontology
Materials Science
Optics

Background:

Ammolite, a gemstone derived from fossilized ammonites mined in Alberta, Canada, exhibits vivid colors.
The coloration is attributed to light interference on the preserved nacre.
The precise mechanism behind Ammolite's unique structural coloration, distinguishing it from other shell structures, remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

To elucidate the underlying cause of the vivid structural colors observed in Ammolite.
To differentiate the optical properties of Ammolite from other biogenic structural colors.

Main Methods:

Analysis of the nanostructure of fossilized nacreous layers in Ammolite.
Investigation of light reflectance spectra and their correlation with structural features.

Main Results:

Identified specific interlaminar nanogaps (approximately 4 nm) within the aragonite plates of fossilized nacre.
Demonstrated that a homogeneous lamination period in these nanogaps is crucial for vivid color emergence.
Established a direct relationship between layer thickness and the resulting structural colors.

Conclusions:

The unique, vivid structural colors of Ammolite are primarily due to specific light reflection from interlaminar nanogaps within the fossilized nacre.
These nanogaps, with their consistent lamination period and thickness-dependent properties, are essential for the observed interference phenomenon and vibrant coloration.