A variety of physical processes involving scattering and
interference phenomena cause color in a variety of minerals.
Thin films of a material with an index of refraction which
differs from the host mineral cause the color of some
minerals. The sequence of colors has long been recognized
as Newtons colors, the same colors seen in an oil slick on
water. The following examples are representative.
Regularly spaced layers of minerals with different indices of refraction will produce colors if the separation of the layers in on the order of the wavelength of light. Familiar examples include opal and feldspars.
Inclusions of foreign phases are often responsible for the color of minerals.
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