Revealing Exotic Nanophase Iron in Lunar Samples Through Impact-Driven Spatial Fingerprints

TL;DR

This study uses atomistic modeling to distinguish between in-situ and exotic micrometeoroid impact origins of nanophase iron in lunar soils, revealing unique spatial signatures that aid in interpreting lunar surface processes.

Contribution

It introduces a novel simulation approach to identify impact-driven nanophase iron formation mechanisms and their spatial fingerprints in lunar samples.

Findings

Exotic np-Fe concentrates in asymmetric, momentum-aligned clusters.

In-situ np-Fe forms diffusely around impact sites.

Exotic np-Fe production can be significant in lunar highlands.

Abstract

Nanophase iron (npFe) plays a crucial role in controlling the optical, chemical, and physical evolution of lunar regolith grains. While in-situ formation of npFe via reduction of native Fe-bearing minerals has long been considered a dominant pathway, recent mineralogical evidence from X.Zeng et al. (2025) reveals that the source of a significant fraction of npFe may be delivered directly by exotic micrometeoroid impacts (exotic npFe). Yet the atomic-scale processes governing how exotic np-Fe forms and survives during hypervelocity impacts remain largely unknown. To quantitatively compare in-situ and exotic delivery and formation of npFe, we perform a series of innovative atomistic modeling of micrometeoroid impacts with distinct projectile target compositions: (1) SiO$_2$ projectiles on Fe$_2$SiO$_4$ targets (in-situ formation), (2) Fe$_2$SiO$_4$ projectiles on SiO$_2$ targets (exotic delivery). Our results reveal distinct mechanistic fingerprints: in-situ np-Fe forms diffusely and radially around the impact site, whereas exotic np-Fe is efficiently retained and concentrated in asymmetric, momentum-aligned clusters. These contrasting spatial signatures provide a potential diagnostic criterion for distinguishing exotic versus in-situ np-Fe in returned lunar soils. In agreement with Chang'e-5 observations, our simulations demonstrate that exotic np-Fe production can be substantial, particularly in Fe-poor terrains such as highland regions. These findings highlight the need to account for exotic np-Fe when interpreting space weathering processes and remote-sensing data for the Moon and other airless bodies.