What Are Lab Diamonds?

A question that I and many jewelers are being asked more often, what are lab grown diamonds? Well in short, they are real diamonds. Instead of being formed by the Earth over millions of years, and dug out by humans, they are grown in a machine over the period of weeks or months.

The rise of lab grown (cultured) diamonds has exploded in 2018-2019. Not only among jewelry buyers, but the industry has seen major changes with companies shifting focus towards both ends of the great diamond debate of 2019! Even the GIA has had to change it's report structure on cultured diamonds, from being called "synthetic" to "lab-grown". This was a huge shift in the understanding of what a "lab-grown" diamond means. Mined diamonds have been around for a very long time, and are used in a wide variety of applications outside of just jewelry. Because diamond is such a tough mineral, it has many industrial uses. However, recent advances in diamond growing technology have made creating large, near-flawless, diamonds a reality that is in reach for many looking to buy/sell these beautiful gems. Like with all technology, it has lowered the costs and the entry fee for those investing into diamonds. While previously most diamonds were only attainable through mining companies or gem cutters dealing with a select few trading partners, now, the reality is very different. With many industrial leading countries hedging their bets on this newly discovered technology as the future of the diamond industry. Obviously this has made many of those, who have invested millions or even billions of dollars into mining diamonds and mined diamonds in general is very upset. From the largest diamond conglomerates, to jewelry stores that have bought millions of dollars worth of diamonds. With one corporation called De Beers having billions worth of diamonds hidden somewhere, but shh we never told you that. Cultured diamonds have definitely disrupted the norm.

This means that there will be many dividing opinions of the subject matter throughout the industry, since media outlets receive their information from one biased source or another. Now we're not saying there's no bias here, but this article is meant to be accurate and set the record straight on cultured diamonds. Recently, Andy Hart, the senior vice president of diamond and jewelry supply at Tiffany & Co said: "Our position is lab-grown diamonds are not a luxury material. We don’t see a role for them in a luxury brand". But that position makes one wonder, when artificial materials became mainstream in other fashion sectors, such as leather or fur. Did the leather companies say the same? Possibly, but regardless of what they thought, faux-leather and other non-animal products began to take over the world, as they were more accessible. Not only were these materials ethical in the eyes of buyers but the opinion of luxury companies didn't matter anymore. Part of the free-market is that the consumer decides what sells and what doesn't.

With that in mind, we can now ask: what are lab grown diamonds? That question should be easy to answer, because they are physically and chemically identical, and hence they are real diamonds. Cultured diamonds are carbon only, score a 10 on the Mohs hardness scale, and they are not an imitator like moissanite or cubic zirconia. The answer is a lot more complicated however, because cultured diamonds arrived so quickly and disrupted decades of mined diamond marketing and advertising. The public perception, in-part will define what a cultured diamond means. Especially in the jewelry industry, and while some still see mined diamonds as the only go to when buying an engagement ring, others are willing to move forward. This "controversial" divide in the industry has also made the public more aware of alternative gemstones. While previously diamond imitators such as moissanite provided an alternative avenue for those looking to save on jewelry, cultured diamonds are - in theory - a replacement for mined diamonds. Meaning that many young people who are looking to save on jewelry are researching more, and finding colorful and at times even rarer gems. Beautiful gems such as morganite, and emerald. All of which do come from our planet Earth, and are plagued with some of the same problems as mined diamonds. Such as destructive and carbon intensive mines, and unethical mining practices. However, their unique colors and rarity in the market has found an audience, as is evident with their popularity on large e-commerce chains such as Etsy. Although these can be grown in labs as well, and the public has yet to decide where it will steer in the mined versus lab gemstone debate with future sales. Since the demand for most colorful gems is low enough that their rarity hasn't made pricing an issue. When you can buy a beautiful central blue sapphire gem for your engagement ring, for a 1/10 of what a diamond the same size could cost, it's difficult to argue why you wouldn't.

Why have cultured diamonds become such an important discussion in recent years? The answer to that is much simpler. Technology has advanced enough to allow the growth of larger diamonds to happen at scale and for reasonable costs. The ability to grow diamonds in a lab has existed for just about 60 years now. However, the method used attempted to replicate how it happens in the Earth. Using HPHT (High Temperature, High Pressure) vessels. The machines, were often expensive to operate, and could yield a limited sized diamonds. This technology was ideal for the industrial market, where smaller diamonds are often used in cutting. For jewelry the imperfections, small stones, as well as the high operating costs were an entry barrier. The new method for growing diamonds is called CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition) - which in my opinion is remarkable technology. There is a lot of science that goes into CVD technology, and there are varying methods/secrets manufacturers use. Therefore, for the sake of this already long article, I'll break it down. The machines have a sealed chamber, inside a diamond substrate (disk coated in a diamond layer essentially) rests at the bottom, and a carbon based gas is injected into the chamber, at controlled amounts. The gas and diamond substrate undergo a plasma treatment which breaks the gas down and forces it to build up on the substrate in a specific way. Which creates your diamond inside the chamber. You can refer to my oversimplified diagram. Or if you're a bit of a nerd, you'll remember Star Trek had replicators which would create any item on demand. Current CVD technology is a replicator but in real life, exciting times right!?

Should you buy one? Depends on if you're in the market for jewelry or not, and if you have brand loyalty. If, for example you love the exquisite craftsmanship at Harry Winston, then there is nothing wrong with supporting your team. However, if you're new to the market, or looking to purchase jewelry knowing it's ethical and environmentally friendly, we really recommend going with cultured diamonds. But remember, most jewelers will be hesitant in dealing with cultured diamonds, seek out an established brand, or check us out and let us create a custom made ring for you.

As it turns out the question is a little tougher to answer than originally thought, when you really begin to research it. Let's recap, they've recently become widely available and thus popular. They've disrupted the market and drawn many opinions from all sides of the debate on diamonds. The technology used to create them is incredible and fairly new, and most likely will continue to evolve. Cultured diamonds have left their mark on the market, and are here to stay. They're real diamonds and the future of diamond jewelry.

Check out Byond Jewelry: https://www.byondjwlry.com/ and let us know in the comments if you would want a mined or cultured diamond in your engagement ring.