Manganese ion site distribution studies in tourmaline by anomalous X-ray scattering methods

The Mn³⁺ site distribution in a manganese-containing tsilaisite tourmaline sample has been determined as 46±3 wt. % in the larger Y octahedral sites and 54± 3 wt. % in the smaller Z octahedral sites. For this, a novel application of anomalous X-ray scattering techniques, in conjunction with the energy dispersive X-ray diffraction procedure, has been used. This method appears to be versatile and applicable to many different elements.