Image: <a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Alchemist-hp" title="User:Alchemist-hp">Alchemist-hp</a> (<a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User_talk:Alchemist-hp" title="User talk:Alchemist-hp"><span class="signature-talk">talk</span></a>) (<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.pse-mendelejew.de">www.pse-mendelejew.de</a>) (FAL)
Bismuth
Bi
The image showcases synthetically grown bismuth crystals, characterized by their striking iridescent surface colors (blues, purples, yellows, greens) and distinctive stepped, hopper crystal habit, presented alongside a 1 cm³ bismuth cube for scale.
Bismuth Physical Properties
Mohs Hardness
2Crystal System
trigonalLuster
metallicStreak Color
silvery-white to grayCleavage
perfect on {0001}Fracture
uneven to hacklySpecific Gravity
9.78Colors
silvery-white, pinkish, reddish, iridescent (yellow, blue, green, purple)Transparency
opaqueType Locality
Bolivia, Australia, Germany, Canada, China, Mexico, Peru (for natural occurrences); synthetic crystals are widely produced.Mineral Group
Native ElementsUses
alloys (low melting point), pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, pigments, lead-free shot, thermoelectric materials, collector specimensAssociated Minerals
quartz, arsenopyrite, galena, pyrite, chalcopyrite, cassiterite, wolframite, gold, silverRarity
commonGeological Context
Native bismuth is a relatively rare mineral, typically found in hydrothermal veins associated with tin, tungsten, silver, and gold deposits, or in pegmatites and contact metamorphic zones, forming under reducing conditions.
