Today, I will talk a little bit about lab grown diamonds since many of you were asking me and we are getting more and more orders with these interesting stones.
WHAT IS A LAB CREATED DIAMOND?
The number one question we get is “are lab-created diamonds, real diamonds? (also called man-made diamonds or lab-grown diamonds)
The answer is a very simple yes.
The only thing that makes a lab-created diamond different from a natural diamond is its origin. A lab-created diamond is “grown” inside a lab using cutting-edge technology that replicates the natural diamond growing process. The result is a man-made diamond that is chemically, physically, and optically the same as those grown beneath the Earth’s surface.
“[Lab-created diamonds] are not fakes. They’re not cubic zirconias. They have all the same physical and chemical properties of a mined diamond.” Stephen Morisseau, a spokesman for the Gemological Institute of America, a nonprofit organization that oversees the international diamond grading system.
Sometimes, lab-created diamonds are referred to as synthetic diamonds. While not technically inaccurate, term “synthetic” may be the reason people believe lab-created diamonds are “fake.”
If we compare them to other popular diamond simulants, it’s obvious that manufactured diamonds, in fact, the real deal.
HOW ARE LAB-CREATED DIAMONDS GROWN?
Before we talk about how lab-created diamonds are made, it’s important to understand how mined diamonds are formed. The processes are extremely similar - only one happens naturally while the other occurs in a lab
Mined Diamonds Geologists believe that diamonds formed deep within the Earth between 1 billion to 3 billion years ago. While they don’t know exactly how those diamonds came to be, they believe the process starts with carbon dioxide that is buried roughly 100 miles beneath the Earth’s surface.
The carbon dioxide is exposed to heat in excess of 2,200 degrees Fahrenheit and put under extreme pressure of roughly 727,000 pounds per square inch. The diamonds are then transported from deep within the Earth’s core to the surface by way of deep volcanic explosions.
Lab-created Diamonds There are two processes labs use to grow diamonds - High Pressure-High Temperature (HPHT) and Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD).
HPHT diamonds are made using one of three manufacturing process: a belt press, the cubic press, and the split-sphere (BARS) press. All of these processes create an environment of extremely high pressure and temperature conducive to diamond growth.
An HPHT diamond begins as a small diamond seed that is placed into carbon. Using one of the manufacturing processes above, the seed is exposed to temperatures of about 1500 degrees Celsius and pressurized to approximately 1.5 million pounds per square inch.
The pure carbon melts and starts to form a diamond around the starter seed. It is then carefully cooled to form a pure carbon diamond.
A CVD diamond begins as a thin slice of diamond seed, which is often an HPHT produced diamond. The diamond seed is placed in a sealed chamber and heated to around 800 degrees Celsius.
The chamber is filled with a carbon rich-gas, like Methane, and other gases. The gases are ionized into plasma using technology similar to that of microwaves or lasers. The ionization breaks the molecular bonds in the gases, and the pure carbon adheres to the diamond seed and slowly crystallizes.
LAB-CREATED VS. MINED
As lab-created diamonds continue to grow in popularity, diamond shoppers will be asking themselves this exact question. But, the only one who can answer that question is the shopper.
It all boils down to what is important to you. You may choose a mined diamond because you feel they hold a certain significance and are one of nature’s miracles with a mysterious origin.
Or, you may be attracted to a lab-created diamond because you feel they signify a modern love and the incredible progression of technology.
While some may want to debate which type of diamond is “better,” in reality, mined diamonds and lab-created diamonds aren’t in competition with one another. Diamonds represent love, and love is love.
The true significance of the diamond you choose isn’t in its origin. It’s not how much you paid. It’s not how it’s graded. It’s not its size.
The significance of the diamond you choose is the love it represents.
- S.H
