Site Content

---

 A mined diamond is formed naturally deep beneath the Earth's crust where temperatures and pressures are very high. These diamonds can only be mined when rare volcanoes erupt and bring them close to the surface.  Diamonds are found in many places throughout the world including Canada, South Africa, Russia, and Brazil. Thus, each location extracts diamonds quite differently. Some locations sift through rocks and stones in river beds, some mine old volcanos, and others simply dig deep in sand by machinery or by hand. Tons of rock are moved for only a few carats—which is why diamonds are so rare and valuable.

While diamonds are formed more than 90 miles below the earth’s surface, volcanic activity carries them up—making mining more achievable. Once boulders are broken down, they are then brought to the surface and taken by truck to a processing plants. Here, access rock and dirt are removed so experts can view exactly the size and clarity of the diamond.

Lab-Grown diamonds have the exact same chemical, physical and optical features as a Mined diamond. They are just grown in a machine rather than the earth. Both are made of carbon and will test as a diamond...because they both are!  Currently, there are two ways Lab-Grown diamonds are created - the HPHT and CVD methods 

The HPHT method is the original method of creating lab-grown diamonds. Gem quality HPHT diamonds were introduced in the 1950s. Outside of growing diamonds, the HPHT process can also be used to enhance the color of diamonds to make them colorless, pink, green, blue, or yellow.

To grow an HPHT diamond, a small diamond seed is placed in carbon, the element that diamonds are made of. The diamond seed is exposed to extreme heat and pressure, replicating the way diamonds are naturally grown underground by the earth. The diamond seed is exposed to temperatures of over 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit and pressure of about 1.5 million PSI (pounds per square inch). The carbon melts and forms a diamond around the seed. It is then cooled and the diamond is formed.

A rough HPHT diamond forms differently than a rough CVD diamond. HPHT diamonds grow into a cuboctahedron, while CVD diamonds grow into a cube-like shape. 

Source: GIA

HPHT diamonds are more likely to have a yellowish hue because they are exposed to nitrogen while forming. They also tend to have darker inclusions, which are metallic. These metallic inclusions can help scientists identify them as lab-grown because naturally formed diamonds rarely capture metals during formation. 

The metallic inclusions in HPHT diamonds can make the stones magnetic. This is another way to tell if a diamond is lab-grown – natural diamonds are not magnetic. A 2012 study revealed that over half of the HPHT diamonds tested registered a detectable magnetic response.

HPHT diamonds occasionally have what is called a "blue nuance." This gives the diamond a subtle blue hue. 

The CVD method was created in the 1980s, making it newer than the HPHT method. The CVD method imitates how diamonds form in interstellar gas clouds. The CVD method uses less pressure than the HPHT method as well as smaller machines. 

The CVD method places a diamond seed in a vacuum chamber. This chamber becomes filled with carbon-rich gases and is heated to nearly 1500 degrees Fahrenheit. The gas turns into plasma from these extremely high temperatures, causing the release of carbon pieces. These carbon pieces become layered onto the diamond seed, which grows the diamond. 

The CVD process produces Type IIA diamonds, which are extremely rare for naturally occurring diamonds. This can help scientists determine if a diamond is lab-grown or earth-grown. Type IIA diamonds are the most chemically pure diamonds – they lack nitrogen and/or boron impurities, unlike HPHT diamonds that are exposed to nitrogen. CVD diamonds are not magnetic like HPHT diamonds can be.

Everyone in the market for a new or upgraded diamond should ask the exact same question. Even if you have shopped for diamonds in the past!

Which one is best for me? Trust me, I asked that question many years ago as well. And after extensive research over the last few years, I bought my wife a Lab-Grown 2.50ct Radiant Cut. She LOVES it. Especially the Price :)

MY SIMPLE ANSWER:

What I tell ALL my clients about he difference between Lab-Grown and Mined Diamonds is this...

If you lined up TEN (10) children in a row and I asked you if you could tell the difference between the 7 Natural Born children and the other 3 Test Tube Babies, could you tell the difference just by looking or touching or even by weighing them? NO! 

The only way to tell the difference is to look at the Birth Certificate.

And with Lab-Grown diamonds, every single diamond We sell WILL have a Certification number and inscribed 'LAB-GROWN' with with laser technology

(For more information, please contact us)

THE BOTTOM LINE: 

Overall, lab grown stones share the same physical and chemical properties as natural diamonds. Lab grown diamonds are real diamonds that last forever but are an estimated 30-50% less expensive than mined diamonds. Overall, neither diamond is “better.” They are not in competition with one another. 

Here is a web link from GIA (Gemological Institute of America) that just may help you decide which diamond is right for you.