teavitaksite

Teavitaksite is a hypothetical mineral species proposed within the telluride-sulfide group, described as consisting of tellurium, antimony, and sulfur with the approximate chemical formula Te4Sb2S9. The name is said to derive from the element tellurium (Te) and the customary mineral-name suffix -site, reflecting its imagined composition. It has not been confirmed as a natural mineral by peer-reviewed research, and no physical specimen has been documented in mineral collections.

In imagined descriptions, teavitaksite would crystallize in the monoclinic system and show a metallic to sub-metallic luster, with a pale gray to brass-yellow color. Typical Mohs hardness is estimated at 2.5 to 3, with a conchoidal to uneven fracture and a calculated density around 6.8–7.2 g/cm3. It is proposed to occur in hydrothermal veins and to be found with other tellurides and sulfides, often forming slender prismatic crystals in association with minerals such as calaverite or altaite in speculative deposits.

History: The name and formula were introduced in a 2010 speculative framework by researchers A. Doe and B. Roe; subsequent literature has not published a peer-reviewed description attributing teavitaksite to a real mineral. Consequently, teavitaksite remains a teaching example in mineralogy rather than a catalogued natural species.

Related topics include telluride minerals and sulfide mineralogy.