Crafting Diamonds from Carbon: The Future of Material Science

We are living in the modern era, an exciting time, especially when it comes to science and technology fields. As we become more advanced in these subjects, our understanding of them grows, and wanting to uncover more secrets that were hidden in the shadows, we are here to bring light and step forward into finding surprising discoveries we could never possibly thought of!!! Such as, who could’ve imagined that the world’s, hardest and one of the most valuable materials (diamonds ) could be possibly created in science labs just by using, carbon?? In fact, using the right materials, we can create synthetic diamonds that have similar properties to the natural ones!! But, before we could continue, how did we come to this conclusion and how was it all discovered?

Introduction: Who discovered Synthetic diamonds?

The discovery of crafting diamonds from carbon was commonly attributed to GE or the Gerneal Electic scientist during the 1950s. One of them who contributed to the the research was Howard Tracy Hall. In 1954, he and his team were responsible of developing the first successful method of creating synthetic diamonds using a process known as High-Pressure High-Temperature, or in short HPHT. The technique helped mimic the extreme conditions and process under the crusts of the Earth where diamonds and other minerals form.

Hall’s achievements were a major breakthrough in the understanding of minerals in science because it proved that diamonds were rare and precious products of nature. His discovery allowed us to synthesize them from carbon in labs!

What are they used for?

Diamonds and other materials made of CNTs (a.k.a carbon nanotubes) are currently one of the most researched and exciting scientific studies. CNTs are unique materials that have properties that make them extremely valuable. For an example, carbon nanotubes and diamonds are very essential to modern technology as they help manage heating in devices such as integrated circuts/electronics (that emit electrons). But, in fact CNTs could help in storing huge amounts of data, due to their ability of holding magnetic metals on their surfaces.

But, in short these carbon nanotubes and diamonds help play a important role in handling electrons and make your devices more efficient to be used.

How are Synthetic diamonds created?

Natural diamonds would take up to BILLIONS of years to form while synthetic diamonds could be created at least in a few weeks. This drastic difference in production reduces the costs and environmental impacts in both consumer markets and high-tech industries.

These lab-grown diamonds are identical to natural diamonds (both chemically & structurally) as they both consist of carbon atoms that are arranged in the same crystal lattice (crystal structure). Synthetic diamonds are physically and visibly real diamonds while alternative diamond mimics their appearances.

The two MAIN methods for creating lab-grown diamonds are under high-pressure high temperature (HPHT) and chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Both of these processes could be conducted under controlled laboratory environments. This helps enable their size, color, clarity, and more specific characteristics.

(HPHT) High-Pressure High-Temperature

HPHT is used to produce synthetic diamonds that replicate the conditions of natural diamonds that form under the Earth.

During the process:

1. Adiamond seed is placed in a chamber with carbon that adds metal catalysts (nickels, iron, etc) which reduces the intense diamond formations.

   
   

2. Then the chamber continues with extreme pressure (up to 870,000psi) and for high temperatures(about 1300 C to 1600C).

Despite the advantage of HPHT of bringing diamonds their hardness and durability, they often contained metallic inclusions from the growth of catalysts, reducing clarity, and limitations in jewelry

CVD ( Chemical Vapor Deposition):

CVD diamonds are made in vacuum chambers (heated with high temperatures of 800-900 Celsius) filled with gases that contain carbon (such as methane) and tiny diamond seeds in them. Because of the high temperature in the chambers, it breaks down the gases and allows the carbon to slowly create the form of a diamond. This process allows us to control the physical properties (shape, size clarity) but the process would take days or weeks to grow (depending on the size and if it is high-quality needs to be). Despite creating diamonds in a short amount of time than natural diamonds, the process is slow and expensive.

CVD diamonds are cleaner than diamonds that are made with different methods. They include high-end jewelry or advanced technology. They also have very few flaws since they don’t depend on metal catalysts to help them grow in size. The CVD diamonds have special qualities such as high heat conductivity, which makes their performance useful in electronics. Additionally, the process allows them to create larger diamonds that have specific qualities that differentiate them from natural diamonds such as they could be needed in cooling devices or special windows.

Despite the great qualities of CVD diamonds, their process is slow and very costly. Many CVD diamonds have a brownish tint that happens due to small imperfections in their structures, This would cost extra treatments to improve their colors.

CVD Diamonds in Industry

Element Six, which is part of the De Beers, use synthetic diamonds using the process called CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition). These diamonds are usually known for their high quality and are made in different industries who manufacture them (by using cutting tools, electronics or optical equipment). Their diamonds are used in fields such as aerospace. The materials that are used in the CVD diamonds can offer higher electric fields, thermal conducitriy or in mobility.

Another industry called SBQuantum (SBQ) uses Element Six’s diamonds which helps them improve their navigation in places that does not use GPS (such as the Arctic). By using their diamonds materials they could operate devices more accurately with less power.