Everything you wanted to know about diamonds.

By: jean-paul marchent

Being the hardest natural element known on Earth, diamonds are good for a wide variety of uses. However, although they can be used to conduct heat, they are not very good as a conductor of electricity. There are some rare forms though, known as type IIB that can be used as semiconductors.

Diamonds are formed from carbon that is held deep in the Earth under great pressure and heat. The altered carbon is then forced up to the surface from the mantle in a uniqe form of magma called kimberlite which erupts from diatreme and pipe volcanic vents.

Due to the tightly compacted atoms and electrons in the composition of a diamond, it has the ability to reduce the velocity of light that passes through it. This is what gives a diamond its unique lustre.

It was not until 1796 that people found out diamonds were a form of carbon, and it was over 150 years later that finally a method of synthesising diamonds was created.

As there is nothing tougher than a diamond, it is the only thing that can be used to cut another diamond. Because of this, it is used heavily in the industrial sector for cutting, polishing, grinding and drilling. The majority of industrial rock drills have diamond tips. Diamonds are no longer just used in the industrial sector since they are now becoming a more popular material used in home electronics, appliances, and automobiles.

When it comes to jewellery, diamonds are one of most popular of all the gems. Diamond jewelry is considered a classic from weddings and engagements to anniversaries and even celebrity awards ceremonies.

Since gold needs to be of a certain hardness to set diamonds into, diamond jewellery is generally made from 18 carat gold.

In the 15th century, Archduke Maximilian of Austria presented Mary of Burgundy with a diamond ring on their engagement as a romantic gesture. Since this time, diamonds have been seen as a symbol of love, joy and romance. Although it started with a diamond ring, all diamond jewellery is now seen as a token of everlasting love and perfection. It is also traditional to wear diamonds as a symbol of achievement and a symbol of status and success.

Although diamonds are measured by carat, unlike gold, this is not the main factor in deciding the cost of the diamond. Diamond prices can differ quite a lot based on color, clarity and cut.

Not all diamonds are colorless. However, the colorless diamonds are more valuable than those that have a colored tint to them, since these colors are caused by impurities. Amazingly enough, one of the main contributing factors to the value of a diamond is the only human contribution to a diamond's brilliance and that is how a diamond is cut. Cutting can be performed in a number of ways such as deep cut, shallow cut and perfect length. Cutting colored diamonds is a different process to clear diamonds though, as the diamond needs to be cut to maximize the color.

A diamond displays the maximum amount of reflectance for a transparent substance, displaying what is called an 'adamantine' lustre. However, it cannot be polished again and again as it loses its properties.

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