Orientation and morphology of calcite nucleated under floating monolayers: A magnesium-ion-enhanced nucleation study

We have studied the biomimetic growth of calcium carbonate crystals under floating monolayer templates, in the presence of Mg ions, using grazing incidence X-ray diffraction and SEM imaging. Crystals grown under sulfate monolayers nucleate from the (0 0 1) plane with and without Mg ions, while undergoing substantial changes in morphology. Crystals grown under alcohol monolayers nucleate from the (1 0 4) plane in the presence of Mg. X-ray data do not detect orientation in crystals grown under acid monolayers, but at higher Mg concentrations the resulting morphologies are indicative of template-nucleated growth. These results suggest that Mg provides living organisms a way to enhance the orientation and control the morphology of acid-templated crystals.