How to Outshine a Natural Diamond

Natural diamonds are one of the hardest and most durable substances on Earth, and over the decades scientists have even discovered how to create diamonds within a laboratory. Recently there have been additional and promising developments into artificial diamond manufacturing, which current fellows Rebecca Fischer and Kael Byrne at the National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) have been involved in. As current fellows, both Fischer and Byrne have been involved in the ground breaking research where scientists have discovered how to make diamonds out of carbon.

This research has recently been published in the Journal of Applied Physics where scientist Jagdish Narayan explains the science involved in this fascinating research. According to Narayan, a new phase of carbon has been discovered and coined as “Q-carbon.” The article goes on to state that, “This bizarre material is even tougher than diamond, is magnetic and emits a soft glow.” For more information about this captivating research that NMNH fellows Fischer and Byrne have been involved in, click here.