Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is a vacuum deposition method used to produce high-quality, and high-performance, solid materials. The process is often used in the semiconductor industry to produce thin films.
Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form of carbon at room temperature and pressure, but diamond is metastable and converts to it at a negligible rate under those conditions. Diamond has the highest hardness and thermal conductivity of any natural material, properties that are used in major industrial applications such as cutting and polishing tools. They are also the reason that diamond anvil cells can subject materials to pressures found deep in the Earth.
A gemstone is a piece of mineral crystal which, when cut or polished, is used to make jewelry or other adornments. Certain rocks and occasionally organic materials that are not minerals may also be used for jewelry and are therefore often considered to be gemstones as well. Most gemstones are hard, but some softer minerals such as brazilianite may be used in jewelry because of their color or luster or other physical properties that have aesthetic value. However, generally speaking, soft minerals are not typically used as gemstones by virtue of their brittleness and lack of durability.
Sapphire is a precious gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum, consisting of aluminium oxide (α-Al2O3) with trace amounts of elements such as iron, titanium, cobalt, lead, chromium, vanadium, magnesium, boron, and silicon. The name sapphire is derived from the Latin word sapphirus, itself from the Greek word sappheiros (σάπφειρος), which referred to lapis lazuli. It is typically blue, but natural "fancy" sapphires also occur in yellow, purple, orange, and green colors; "parti sapphires" show two or more colors. Red corundum stones also occur, but are called rubies rather than sapphires. Pink-colored corundum may be classified either as ruby or sapphire depending on locale. Commonly, natural sapphires are cut and polished into gemstones and worn in jewelry. They also may be created synthetically in laboratories for industrial or decorative purposes in large crystal boules. Because of the remarkable hardness of sapphires – 9 on the Mohs scale (the third hardest mineral, after diamond at 10 and moissanite at 9.5) – sapphires are also used in some non-ornamental applications, such as infrared optical components, high-durability windows, wristwatch crystals and movement bearings, and very thin electronic wafers, which are used as the insulating substrates of special-purpose solid-state electronics such as integrated circuits and GaN-based blue LEDs. Sapphire is the birthstone for September and the gem of the 45th anniversary. A sapphire jubilee occurs after 65 years.
Tanzanite is the blue and violet variety of the mineral zoisite, caused by small amounts of vanadium. Tanzanite belongs to the epidote mineral group. Tanzanite is only found in Simanjiro District of Manyara Region in Tanzania, in a very small mining area approximately 7 km (4.3 mi) long and 2 km (1.2 mi) wide near the Mererani Hills.
Lab-grown diamond is diamond that is produced in a controlled technological process. Unlike diamond simulants, synthetic diamonds are composed of the same material as naturally formed diamonds—pure carbon crystallized in an isotropic 3D form—and share identical chemical and physical properties.
Gemesis Inc. was a privately held company located in New York City. The company grew synthetic diamonds using proprietary technology.
The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) is a nonprofit institute based in Carlsbad, California. It is dedicated to research and education in the field of gemology and the jewelry arts. Founded in 1931, GIA's mission is to protect buyers and sellers of gemstones by setting and maintaining the standards used to evaluate gemstone quality. The institute does so through research, gem identification, diamond grading services, and a variety of educational programs. Through its library and subject experts, GIA acts as a resource of gem and jewelry information for the trade, the public and media outlets.
Apollo Diamond Inc. was a company based in Boston, Massachusetts that was able to produce nearly flawless single crystal diamond wafers and crystals for potential use in the optoelectronics, nanotechnology, and consumer gem markets. The company used chemical vapor deposition (CVD) for the production of their gem-sized synthetic diamond crystals, and obtained several U.S. patents on the process. The company's techniques were able to produce colorless gems, in contrast to previous diamond-making techniques which usually produced colored diamonds.
Diamonds were largely inaccessible to investors until the recent advent of regulated commodities, due to a lack of price discovery and transparency. The characteristics of individual diamonds, especially the carat weight, color and clarity, have significant impact on values, but transactions were always private. With the standardized commodity as an underlying asset, several market traded financial instruments have been announced.
Memorial diamonds are lab-grown diamonds that are promoted as being produced from carbon extracted from human or pet animal hair or cremated remains, cremation diamonds, that are provided to the producer by the customer.
Diamond is a gemstone formed by cutting a raw diamond. Diamonds are one of the best-known and most sought-after gems, and they have been used as decorative items since ancient times.
Gemmological Institute of India is a gemmology training school in Mumbai, India.
International Gemological Institute (IGI) is a Belgian diamond, colored stone and jewelry certification organization. Established in 1975, it is the largest independent gemological laboratory worldwide.
Scio Diamond Technology Corporation was a synthetic diamond manufacturer that produced near flawless single-crystal diamonds for gemstone and industrial applications, in Greenville, South Carolina. The company produced chemical vapor deposition (CVD) gem-sized synthetic diamond crystals using processes pioneered by Apollo Diamond, and had acquired Apollo Diamond's technology and assets including several US patents on the processes.
Pink diamond is a type of diamond that has pink color. The source of their pink color is greatly debated in the gemological world but it is most commonly attributed to plastic deformation that these diamonds undergo during their formation.
Diamond Foundry is a producer of lab grown diamonds in San Francisco, California, USA. Diamond Foundry claims that its lab-grown diamonds are of similar quality to natural diamonds and are more environmentally sustainable, as they do not require the extraction and processing of diamonds from the earth.
ALTR Created Diamonds is a brand of lab-grown diamonds created by R.A. Riam Group.
Gemological Science International, or GSI, is an independent gemological organization that is one of the largest gemological entities in the world, with offices in four continents.
