How Lab Diamonds Are Made
How Lab Diamonds Are Made
Key Highlights:
Lab-grown diamonds:
- Mimic natural diamonds through advanced technology.
- Share the same physical, chemical and optical properties as natural diamonds.
- Are more affordable than natural diamonds of the same size and quality.
- Come in a wider variety of colours, including fancy colours rarely found in nature.
Distinguishing lab-grown diamonds from simulants:
- Cubic zirconia and moissanite are diamond simulants that look similar but lack the same brilliance and durability.
- Lab-grown diamonds can be identified by specialized equipment due to slight variations in trace elements.
Popular styles and settings for lab-grown diamond rings:
- Wide variety of styles including round, oval, pear and heart shapes.
- Numerous setting options to enhance the diamond’s beauty.
- Can be set in recycled gold or platinum.
Benefits of lab-grown diamonds:
- No dangerous mining required.
- Eco-friendly.
- Various colours and styles available.
How are Lab Diamonds made?
No mining: diamonds created in labs do not require the dangerous work of excavation and mining.
Best quality: artificial diamonds have the same physical, chemical and optical attributes as real diamonds; they don’t just look and feel the same, they are the same.
Best price: since artificial diamonds don’t require the long and dangerous work of finding and polishing the diamonds, they cost a fraction of naturally-found diamonds of the same size and quality.
Reasons to Make Artificial Diamonds?
By mimicking the natural processes that create diamonds in the Earth’s crust using advanced technology and highly-controlled laboratory environments, scientists are able to engineer or culture diamonds. Natural diamonds are created from carbon under immense pressure and time. The lab mimics this process and arranges the carbon atoms exactly the same as natural diamonds to form the same crystal structure, and since they are made the same way they have the same physical, optical and chemical properties. Since this process has been perfected, the artificial diamonds can be made in a variety of colorless ranges. They are also available in a variety of fancy colors and hues that are extremely rare in nature, which makes them sell at much more competitive rates than the naturally-colored diamonds of the same properties.
Searching for Artificial Diamonds
Artificial diamonds come in a variety of shape cuts:
- Round: The classic round shape with a circular girdle.
- Oval: An elongated circle, where the length is greater than the width.
- Cushion: Resembling a pillow, it has a large table with straight, concave, or convex sides, typically rectangular with a 1.10-1.20 width-to-length ratio.
- Princess: A square-shaped diamond.
- Pear: A teardrop shape.
- Emerald: A rectangular shape with a large table.
- Marquise: An elongated shape with pointed ends.
- Asscher: A square shape similar to the emerald cut.
- Radiant: A square shape with additional facets on the top.
- Heart: A heart-shaped diamond.
The Process to Create an Artificial Diamond
Artificial diamonds are cultured from a small piece of an already-existing diamond; the carbon is added using an extreme pressure and heat technique called CVD, which mimics how natural diamonds are formed.
To grow a fancy-colored diamond, the process is done while adding a trace element that differs from the diamond during the growth phase. The only way to detect an artificial diamond is by using specialized equipment that can detect minute differences in the trace elements and the way the crystals are formed.
Difference Between Artificial Diamonds and Simulants That Look Like Diamonds
Cubic zirconia and moissanite look very much like diamonds from the outside, but their physical and chemical characteristics are very different, and it’s important to be able to distinguish between them. The simulants are much much cheaper than natural diamonds as they lack the same resilience and brilliance as natural diamonds. Simulants can be distinguished from natural or artificial diamonds by only looking at them without any equipment. Even with a hand-held diamond tester the simulants will differ greatly as they have different conductivity than both natural and artificial diamonds.
With that said some naturally-colored and a few artificial diamond types can be mistaken as moissanites with specific diamond testers due to similarities in electrical conductivity, but their refractive properties are undeniable as moissanites are double refractive while diamonds are single refractive, and this is how experts can distinguish between them easily.
The most popular styles of artificial diamonds:
- Waverly – round-shaped, surrounded by smaller round diamonds.
- Four-Prong Petite Comfort Fit – round-shape held in 4 diagonal corners.
- Petite Twisted Vine – round-shape held in 4 diagonal corners, with a wave of smaller diamonds.
- Elodie – gold ring holding a round-shaped diamond in 4 diagonal corners.
- Petite Shared Prong – ring holding a round shape in 4 diagonal corners while there are many smaller diamonds on the ring.
- Aria – oval shape with one smaller diamond on each side of a white gold ring.
- Willow – round shape with two diamonds on each side within twisting ring-like vines.
- Six-Prong Petite Comfort Fit – round shape held on 6 corners.
- Luxe Ballad – oval shape with one diamond on each side of the gold ring.
- Viviana – round shape with smaller diamonds on the ring.
- Nouveau – pear shape with a ring covered with diamonds in a V shape.
- Poppy – round shape with 6 prongs and diamonds on the ring.
- Aberdeen – Intricate design with a round shape diamond and twisting metal style on the ring.
- Esme – round shape with 6 prongs.
- Valencia – copper colored ring with a round shape 4 prongs and smaller diamonds on the ring.
- Luna – round shape while the ring encompasses around the diamond.
- Willow – round shape with two diamonds on each side within twisting ring-like vines.
- Six-Prong Petite Comfort Fit – round shape held on 6 corners.
- Luxe Ballad – oval shape with one diamond on each side of the gold ring.
- Demi – round shape with smaller diamonds around on the ring.
- Selene – oval shape with smaller diamonds on each side of the gold ring.
- Odessa – round shape with smaller diamonds around the diamond in a square and on the ring.
- Reverie – round shape with ring that opens to two prongs on each side of the diamond.
Artificial Diamond Ring Settings
There is a large variety of ring settings for the artificial diamonds that will enhance the beauty and brilliance of the diamonds. The ring style is matched with the diamond’s accent to enhance it. Look at the product detail to see if only the center diamond is artificial or all the diamonds are artificial.
Artificial vs. Natural Diamonds
Artificial diamonds have the same fire, sparkle and brilliance like natural diamonds, as their physical, chemical and optical properties are identical. Looking at an artificial diamond, even with a loupe, it’s impossible to differentiate between it and a natural one. Artificial diamonds may have trace elements that are different than their natural counterparts, but this has no effect on any of the diamond’s properties and the difference between them can only be detected by specialized equipment in the lab. When buying artificial diamonds they should always come with a gem certification to identify them as artificial and that they’re made in a lab. Artificial diamonds can be created to fit into recycled gold or platinum setting that you select.
Conclusion
In conclusion, lab-grown diamonds offer a compelling alternative to mined diamonds. They boast the same sparkle, brilliance, and physical properties as their natural counterparts, but with a significantly smaller environmental and social footprint. With their ethical sourcing, competitive pricing, and wider colour range, lab diamonds are a growing trend in the jewellery market. If you’re considering a diamond purchase, whether for an engagement ring, anniversary gift, or personal indulgence, lab diamonds are definitely worth exploring.
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