Figure 3.

Crystal growth pathways by amorphous particles attachment. Bleached surface of the prisms in P. nobilis at the beginning of their formation imaged using: A,B) scanning electron microscopy (SEM); and C,D) atomic force microscopy (AFM). The pyramid in (B) reveals {101–4} planes of calcite. Bleached surface of the prisms in P. nigra at the beginning of their formation imaged using: E,F) SEM; and G,H) AFM. The lines in (F) designate the faceted circular patterns formed around what we assume to be the nucleus marked by an arrow and highlighted in the insert.