A way of turning inferior, brown diamonds into rare and expensive neon
yellow-green stones is being patented by the General Electric Company (WO
01/14050). The starting point is a supply of cheap diamonds, with 鈥渋mpurity
clusters鈥 of four nitrogen atoms each. These stones are encased in refractory
material and consolidated into pills. The pills are then heated and compressed,
with the refractory coating spreading the load. Under pressure, the nitrogen
atoms rearrange into smaller clusters, which fluoresce in ultraviolet light.
When you break the coating the diamonds look yellow-green in daylight, and sell
for a much higher price.
More from 51动漫
Explore the latest news, articles and features
Technology
Most people prefer AI-written stories 鈥 and can’t tell when they are made by humans
News
Mathematics
Why winner of biggest prize in maths has decided to work on AI instead
News
Technology
Will a new kind of AI that understands physical reality change the world again?
Features
Technology
Why full-fledged quantum computers might always be five years away
Comment
Popular articles
Trending 51动漫 articles