spodumene, also called Triphane, a lithium aluminum silicate mineral (LiAlSi 2 O 6) in the pyroxene family, an important ore of lithium and a source of ceramic materials. It is ordinarily found in lithium-bearing granite pegmatites. When brilliant and glassy, clear spodumene is valued as a semiprecious gem (more by collectors and museums than by the public, …