A High-Pressure Polymorph of Troilite, FeS

A new polymorph of FeS was produced in a diamond-anvil cell and observed at high pressure both optically and by x-ray diffraction. Fourteen x-ray reflections of the high-pressure FeS were recorded; however, the crystal structure is unknown. This form of FeS is stable at 25 degrees C only at pressures above approximately 55 kilobars. The transition to the lower pressure polymorph, troilite, is rapid and reversible.