Lab Grown Diamonds
What are Lab Grown Diamonds and why do I need to know about them.
In very simple terms Lab Grown diamonds are real diamonds that have been grown in a laboratory on mass at a much cheaper price that digging natural diamonds from the earth.
The first known lab Grown diamonds were created in 1954 by General Electric, they were far too small and not of gem quality so they we used for industrial purposes. Scientist have been working since then to perfect the method of growing these diamonds into useable gemstones and have had great success in over the last decade
Lab Grown diamonds now rival natural mined diamonds in colour, clarity, and they possess all the structural hardness and refractive brilliance of natural diamonds.
Why Buy a Lab Grown Diamond?
If you were in a position that your budget for diamonds did not match your dream, you can now reassess your situation. At the time of writing this article a white Lad Grown diamond should cost you no more than 20% of that of the equivalent mined diamond.
While I do believe that in time this will probably reduce even further I do not feel it has much more to go.
Are they really the same?
In the main a CVD Lab Grown diamond (I will explain later) are optically, chemically and physically identical to a Type IIa mined diamond . It requires a highly sophisticated equipment specially design for the purposed to identifying Lab Grown diamonds and a trained gemologist to distinguish the difference between the 2.
Without this instrument even a highly experienced diamond expert or gemologist cannot differentiate them.
How does this change the way I buy my diamonds
They same logic applies as it always has, you need to trust who you are buying your diamond from and most importantly you should be able to come back to them if you have any concerns about your diamond and be they be there to help you with any cleaning or maintenance that is required.
You really need to know that the person you are buying your diamond from knows everything about what they are selling you. Is it mined or LAB Grown? Is it certified? Is it CVD or HPHT? Has it under gone post growth treatment?
Are all Lab Grown Diamonds the same?
Lab Grown diamonds are all different, as all mined diamonds and are grade with the famous 4C’s ( Cut, Colour , Clarity and Carat/weight) but they are even more different in the process of growth.
There are mainly two process of growth diamonds. The original process developed by GE HPHT (High Pressure/High Temperature) This method involved placing a diamond seed into a piece of carbon, high pressure and high temperature is applied simultaneously for an extended period a of time. This pressure and temperature melts the carbon, resulting in the formation of a diamond around the initial diamond seed. This method is complex, expensive and does not give you a consistent high quality diamond.
The second preferred method is CVD (Chemical Vapour Deposition) This method also starts with a diamond seed from a mined Type IIa diamond in a sealed chamber and is filled with carbon gas and is heated at high temperature, a new diamond forms as the molecular bond in the gas is broken down and the pure carbon begins to bond to the diamond seed.
In is common for Lab Grown diamonds to have further treatment after this growth process to remove inclusions and improve colour.
When sourcing diamonds for you we will always be open with you about the facts in the diamond and do our very best to meet your requirements including the most important factor your budget.
Contact us now to see how we can assist you in finding your dream diamond.
