Synthetic Grown Diamonds - As Jewelry & For Industry

Synthetic grown diamonds in small sizes have been in wide use in industry for over fifty years. Now, with larger crystals being grown, a significant share of the market for diamond jewelry is also being captured by synthetic grown diamonds.

Gemesis and Apollo have new techniques to manufacture synthetic diamonds. Gemesis is growing synthetic diamonds for sale by the High Pressure High Temperature (HPHT) method in Sarasota, Fl, while Apollo Diamonds is exploring the low pressure chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique, used earlier mainly to make polycrystalline diamond, for making single crystal synthetic diamonds for sale in Boston, Ma.

The Gemesis synthetic diamond press is a washing-machine size equipment working at 1500 °C and 58000 atm, in which a molten bath of graphite and a proprietary catalyst helps a tiny piece of natural diamond to grow to an approx 2.8-carat rough synthetic yellow diamond in about 3½ days. The synthetic diamond press is used in large numbers to meet the demand.

Single-crystal diamond wafers of Apollo synthetic diamonds are big enough to be cut into diamond gemstones of a carat of more. A tiny piece of natural diamond acts as a starting point also for growing Apollo synthetic diamonds. The Apollo process is reported to be less costly that that used by Gemesis.

Applications of Synthetic diamonds and diamond alternatives

Both synthetic grown diamonds and natural diamonds make the most exquisite jewelry.

The Moissanite stone, especially the ones developed in laboratories, deserve special mention here. They are often regarded as the best alternatives of diamond for their inner sheen and brilliance. Moreover, they are second only to diamond in their hardness. Moissanites can be cut into any possible shapes and look great when set on any of the precious metals. These facts, along with the low price factor, have led to the wide acclaim of moissanite as a gemstone.

The affordability, highest hardness and stiffness, insulating properties, negligible thermal expansion, transparency to UV and inertness to nearly all acids and alkalis make synthetic diamonds attractive for many industrial applications.

Tiny synthetic diamonds have been in use in saw blades and drill bits for ages. They are also used as heat spreaders in high-power electronic devices, as surgical blades and as optical windows for high-powered CO2 lasers.

Synthetic single-crystal appropriately doped semi-conducting diamond may increasingly form the core of most high-powered electronic devices in the coming years.

Word Count: 396