Man Made Diamond Applications

The top spot of the gemstone market has long been occupied by the brilliant, lustrous, diamond. Technology, too, ranks diamonds very high, but because of the stone's ability to conduct heat, its hardness (a perfect 10 on the Mohs scale of mineral hardness) and its stability. The automotive industry uses diamond-edged saws and cutting tools. Medicine utilizes diamonds in lasers. Though in great demand, diamonds aren't in great supply. Mining is expensive and the quality can't be guaranteed, making pure diamonds quite rare. As a result, the world's scientific minds began developing ways to create man made diamonds. Molecularly identical to the diamond, man made diamonds are appropriate for the same applications. Due to the lower cost and the ability to "grow" to specifications, synthetics may even surpass naturally occurring diamonds.

Since man made diamond applications are the same as for natural diamonds, they can be used as electrodes. Diamonds are chemically inert (non reactive), allowing the electrodes to be used in situations where normal electrodes would be destroyed. Detecting redox (reduction/oxidation) reactions that normally can't be studied is another application for man made diamonds. Additionally, in water supplies, diamonds can sometime degrade the redox-reactive organic contaminants.

Diamond is radiation hard and possesses a wide bandgap, making its use as a radiation detection device another man made diamond application. In fact, especially due to its density mirroring that of soft tissue, diamond has already been utilized in some physics experiments, particularly in the area of quantum physics and matter/anti-matter particles.

Semiconductor use tops the list of man made applications. Already possessing thermal conductivity, man made diamonds can be made more so by adding boron and phosphorus during the creation process, resulting in n-type or p-type semiconductors. The advantage over current semiconductors is that diamonds as transistors aren't vulnerable to radiation or chemical damage and can handle much more heat than silicon. These traits give man made diamonds a promising future in the electronics industry, especially concerning power.

HPHT, high pressure, high temperature, is the original method of creating man made diamonds. Using large presses that can weigh several tons, HPHT uses pressures of 5 GPa (giga pascals) and temperatures of 1,500 degrees Celsius to recreate the earth's method of creating natural diamonds. Small, non gem-worthy chips and dust are the result of this process, and usually in a polycrystalline structure (unlike single crystal natural diamonds.)

These pressure created diamonds (PCD), in micrometer bits, are encased in a metal matrix, hardening it and applying the result to tools. Machining tools, especially when machining non-ferrous alloys is another prime use of PCD. Drilling for oil is also a man made diamond application for PCD, but machining aluminum is the principle use of PCD. In the automotive industry, PCD are used to machine aluminum alloys that can cause tools extreme wear. The only cost-efficient way to machine these alloys is diamond.

As the method of man made diamond production improves, so will man made diamond applications. Now with the recent breakthrough in CVD to grow diamonds, the stones can be cut by scientists into wafer shapes for use in technology. Conductivity can be improved, too. The possibilities are endless, as time will tell.

James Chartwell writes for a variety of topics, including travel and science. Please visit his interesting resource all about man made diamonds at http://www.manmadediamondinfo.com