Scientists have used a new technique to synthesize diamonds at normal, atmospheric pressure and without a starter gem, which could make the precious gemstones easier to grow in the lab.
However, the new method has its own challenges. One problem is that the diamonds grown with this technique are tiny; the largest ones are hundreds of thousands of times smaller than the ones grown with HPHT. That makes them too small to be used as jewels.
Just wear hundreds of thousands of them glued together, problem solved.
On a more realistic note though, the applications of this will probably be industrial for a good while. I found it interesting how the article mentions that they were able to develop a diamond coating over their growth substrate. That probably has some cool applications in industrial settings where diamond-plated materials are used.
It depends; if a company can use this to make them stupid cheap, then selling them stupid cheap to undercut all their competitors could still make them more money than keeping the price the same and pocketing the saved production costs.
I was making a jab. I’m aware of market forces, but price memory is a thing and often the true cost of production isn’t reflected in consumer pricing. Especially when an industry just decides they can keep prices where they are if not raise them, looking at you egg producers.
Not going to be wearing these any time soon
Just wear hundreds of thousands of them glued together, problem solved.
On a more realistic note though, the applications of this will probably be industrial for a good while. I found it interesting how the article mentions that they were able to develop a diamond coating over their growth substrate. That probably has some cool applications in industrial settings where diamond-plated materials are used.
Diamond saw blades are about to get cheaper
Not in a profit driven economy…
It depends; if a company can use this to make them stupid cheap, then selling them stupid cheap to undercut all their competitors could still make them more money than keeping the price the same and pocketing the saved production costs.
I was making a jab. I’m aware of market forces, but price memory is a thing and often the true cost of production isn’t reflected in consumer pricing. Especially when an industry just decides they can keep prices where they are if not raise them, looking at you egg producers.
Not useful for jewelry, but possibly quite useful for many manufacturing or industrial purposes?
So… useful then?
We have a while to wait before everyone has microdiamonds in their testicles, but one day we’ll get there!
deleted by creator