Abstract
A new theory of oscillatory zoning in naturally grown plagioclase crystals is presented. This describes explicitly the coupling between the interface kinetics and the diffusion of chemical species in the melt. The crystal growth rate R responds with a finite delay time to concentration changes at the interface. Thus the growth rate cannot be simply some function of the supersaturation. Oscillatory zoning occurs when growth rate is low. This theory accounts for the absence or extreme rareness of oscillatory zoned plagioclase crystals in laboratory growth experiments.
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Allègre, C., Provost, A. & Jaupart, C. Oscillatory zoning: a pathological case of crystal growth. Nature 294, 223–228 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1038/294223a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/294223a0
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