What are Lab-grown diamonds?

About Lab-grown diamonds:

• Lab-grown diamonds are diamonds that are produced using specific technology which mimics the geological processes that grow natural diamonds.
• The diamond simulants such as Moissanite, Cubic Zirconia (CZ), White Sapphire, YAG, and others are used to make them look like natural diamonds.

How are LGDs produced?

• There are multiple ways in which LGDs can be produced.
•  High pressure, high temperature” (HPHT) method
• It is the most common and cheapest method.
• In this method, extremely heavy presses that can produce up to 730,000 psi of pressure under extremely high temperatures of at least 1500 celsius are applied.
•  Usually, graphite is used as the “diamond seed” and when subjected to these extreme conditions, the relatively inexpensive form of carbon turns into one of the most expensive carbon forms.
• Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) and explosive formation create what is known as detonation nanodiamonds.

Application of Lab-grown diamonds:

• Used for industrial purposes, in machines and tools and their hardness and extra strength make them ideal for use as cutters. 
• Pure synthetic diamonds are used in electronics as a heat spreader for high-power laser diodes, laser arrays and high-power transistors.

Q1) What is Graphite?

It is a naturally occurring form of crystalline carbon which is found in metamorphic and igneous rocks. It is extremely soft and breaks down with very light pressure.

Source: Budget 2023: What are lab-grown diamonds, mentioned by FM Nirmala Sitharaman?

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