Lab grown diamonds (also known as lab created diamonds, man made diamonds, engineered diamonds, and cultured diamonds) are grown in highly controlled laboratory environments using advanced technological processes that duplicate the conditions under which diamonds naturally develop when they form in the mantle, beneath the Earth’s crust. These lab created diamonds consist of actual carbon atoms arranged in the characteristic diamond crystal structure. Since they are made of the same material as natural diamonds, they exhibit the same optical and chemical properties.
How are Lab Grown Diamonds made?
Our lab grown diamonds are created from the tiny carbon seeds of pre-existing diamonds. Advanced technology – either extreme pressure and heat or a special deposition process known as CVD – mimics the method of natural diamond formation. Some man made diamonds created through deposition may also undergo pressure and heat treatment after they are grown. Man made fancy colored diamonds are formed when small amounts of specific trace elements are present during the growth phase of the created diamond, just like in nature. In both white and fancy colored man made diamonds, the exact composition of trace elements may differ from their natural diamond counterparts. A man made diamond can only be distinguished from natural diamonds using specialized equipment that can detect the minor differences in trace elements and crystal growth.
Diamond simulants, such as cubic zirconia and moissanite, look similar to diamonds but are not true carbon crystals. Simulants do not have the same chemical and physical properties as natural diamonds and therefore sell at much lower prices than lab created diamonds. Simulants can be distinguished from natural or lab created diamonds using only the naked eye.
