Local structure of iron and coloration mechanism of Mi‐se celadon glaze by Mössbauer spectroscopy and SR‐XAFS

Abstract Mi‐se celadon has been highly praised for its unique glaze color. For a long time, due to the very low content of iron used as a colorant in glaze, existing in a noncrystalline amorphous form with a short‐range order, there has been no substantial breakthrough in the accurate analysis of its local structure of iron and its influence on the color of Mi‐se celadon glaze. Here, the advanced techniques such as Mössbauer spectroscopy and X‐ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) were used to exactly anatomize the local structure of iron, and to study the coloring mechanism of Mi‐se celadon glaze. The results revealed the existence of iron in glaze in the form of the octahedral coordination ( or ) and the tetrahedral coordination (), influencing the glaze color through selective absorption of visible light based on d‐d transitions of them. The ratio of indicates that Mi‐se celadon was fired in a strong reducing atmosphere created by closed porcelain saggar. It disclosed the coloration of glaze from the viewpoint of the local structure of iron and provided a new insight for studying the coloration mechanism.