Birch Mountains kimberlite field shales interbedded with kimberlite at some of the diatremes are consistent with a Late Cretaceous age (Late Albian to Maastrichtian). The volcanic rocks of the BM field consist primarily of crater-facies pyroclastic kimberlite and resedimented kimberlite. They include massive layers, as well as bedded and graded layers of coarse lapilli alternating with layers of finer tuff. Lapilli and olivine phenocrysts are set in a grey-green matrix of serpentine, carbonate minerals (calcite, dolomite and magnesite) and clay minerals. Phlogopite, oxide minerals (ilmenite, perovskite and spinel), apatite and pyrite are also present. Diamonds and microdiamonds have been recovered from samples taken from
Gemstone irradiation Gemstone irradiation The gemstone irradiation is a process in which a gemstone is artificially irradiated in order to enhance its optical properties. High levels of ionizing radiation can change the atomic structure of the gemstone's crystal lattice, which in turn alters the optical properties within it. As a result, the gemstone's color may be significantly altered or the visibility of its inclusions may be lessened. The process, widely practised in jewelry industry, is done in either a nuclear reactor for neutron bombardment, a particle accelerator for electron bombardment, or a gamma ray facility using the radioactive isotope cobalt-60. Irradiation has