Microstrain and Crystallite Size of Natural Microcrystalline Quartz by X‐ray Line Broadening Analysis

The analysis of X‐ray diffraction line profile broadening reveals the relationship between lattice microstrain and crystallite size for some microcrystalline quartz in natural quartzose rocks which crystallized slowly and statically. The mean microstrain of quartz microcrystallites increases proportionally with the reciprocal of the crystallite size and its magnitude reaches 0.18% (1.8×10 −3 ) for crystallites ∼43 nm in diameter. This large lattice microstrain is ascribed to the internal pressure derived from the surface energy of the quartz microcrystallite.