| Germanite | |
|---|---|
 Germanite, probably from the Tsumeb Mine, Oshikoto Region, Namibia. | |
| General | |
| Category | Sulfide mineral |
| Formula | Cu26Ge4Fe4S32 [1] |
| IMA symbol | Ger [2] |
| Strunz classification | 2.CB.30 |
| Dana classification | 2.9.4.2 |
| Crystal system | Isometric |
| Crystal class | Hextetrahedral (43m) H-M symbol: (4 3m) |
| Space group | P43n |
| Identification | |
| Color | Reddish grey tarnishing to dark brown |
| Crystal habit | Usually massive; rarely as minute cubic crystals |
| Cleavage | None |
| Tenacity | Brittle |
| Mohs scale hardness | 4 |
| Luster | Metallic |
| Streak | Dark grey to black |
| Diaphaneity | Opaque |
| Specific gravity | 4.4 to 4.6 |
| Other characteristics | Cell data: a = 10.585 Å Z = 1 [3] |
| References | [4] [5] |
Germanite is a rare copper iron germanium sulfide mineral, Cu26Fe4Ge4S32. It was first discovered in 1922, and named for its germanium content. [3] It is only a minor source of this important semiconductor element, which is mainly derived from the processing of the zinc sulfide mineral sphalerite. [6] Germanite contains gallium, zinc, molybdenum, arsenic, and vanadium as impurities. [3]
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. [5] 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. [3]
| X-Ray Powder Diffraction [7] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| d spacing | 3.05 | 2.65 | 1.87 | 1.60 | 1.32 | 1.21 | 1.08 | 1.02 |
| relative intensity | 10 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
