Are lab-grown diamonds real?

Laboratory grown diamonds share an identical chemical make up to natural diamonds, both consisting of pure carbon in a cubic crystalline form. The difference between lab-grown diamonds and natural diamonds is how they are formed. Natural diamonds form below the surface of the earth over millions of years, whereas lab-grown diamonds can be created in a lab over a period of a few weeks. Lightbox diamonds are grown to match the chemical properties of a natural diamond and the finished stone is optically identical. You can find more details on how they're made below.

Lab-grown diamonds are now becoming a popular alternative for many people, since they can have the same beauty and properties as a mined diamond and are often more affordable.

How are lab-grown diamonds made?

There are a few methods used to create lab-grown diamonds. Typically, lab-grown diamonds start with a tiny lab diamond, like a seed. The seeds are placed in a chamber called a plasma reactor (in the case of CVD synthesis) or a large mechanical press (if manufactured by HPHT). Then, depending on the technology used, some combination of heat, pressure and a carbon source are used to make the crystals grow, layer by layer.

HPHT stands for high pressure high temperature

This method mimics the conditions under which diamonds naturally form. Large mechanical presses are used to apply extreme pressure and high temperature to carbon in the presence of a diamond seed. The seeds act as a template for a lattice of carbon to a grow layer by layer over the course of a few days.

How long does it take to grow a diamond?

In nature, it takes millions of years for diamonds to form. In a lab, we can grow a one carat stone in about two weeks.

Lab grown vs simulants

While they may look similar, diamond simulants (like cubic zirconia) are chemically not diamonds at all. They're completely different gems and materials. On the other hand, lab-grown diamonds are chemically the same as natural diamonds, but their creation process is sped up by science.

How do you make colored lab-grown diamonds?

One of the great advantages of lab-grown diamonds is that they can be made in an array of colors that are very rare when found in nature. This is achieved by making changes in the gas mix added to the CVD reactor combined with treatments to these stones applied at the end of the synthesis process. The process sounds simple, but it has taken our scientists thousands of hours to refine the process and create the perfect Lightbox shades of light pink and blue every time.

LAB-GROWN DIAMOND

chemical composition: carbonhardness: 10 on the Mohs scalerefractive index: 2.417 - 2.419brilliant and sparklyexpensive

Lab-grown diamonds vs. Moissanite

Moissanite is a completely different gem, that tends to be less expensive than a diamond. It started out as a naturally occurring mineral, but natural supply wasn’t enough to make even the smallest pieces of jewelry. Scientists then found a way to replicate it in a lab to make it commercially available. While it might look like diamond it’s a much lower grade on color and hardness.

Lab-grown diamonds vs. Cubic zirconia

Cubic zirconia was created to be a less expensive alternative to diamonds. It’s chemically completely different, not as hard and lacks the same sparkle. It’s also not considered a gemstone because it can’t be found in nature. It’s made from powdered zirconium and zirconium dioxide, melted together and formed into a stone.