Overview
- Researchers identified a previously unknown Ca–Cu–Si type‑I clathrate inside a copper‑rich red trinitite sample from the 1945 Trinity detonation.
- The crystal is the first clathrate reported from a nuclear explosion, confirmed by X‑ray diffraction after electron microscopy and nano‑CT imaging.
- A silicon‑rich quasicrystal sits nearby in the same sample, and modeling indicates the two phases most likely formed separately under the same brief, extreme conditions.
- Structural analysis shows the clathrate is a cubic framework of silicon cages that trap calcium with measurable copper and minor iron, and calculations find it is only metastable at low copper levels.
- Gamma‑ray readings place the sample’s formation near the test tower’s coaxial cable about 180 to 197 feet from ground zero, offering clues useful for materials science and nuclear forensics.