The differences between Natural Diamonds and Lab Grown Diamonds cannot be seen with the naked eye. Natural Diamonds have tiny amounts of nitrogen, while Lab Grown Diamonds have no nitrogen. This is actually one of the signifiers gemologists use to identify if a diamond is lab grown or natural.
The only way one could distinguish a lab grown diamond from a natural diamond is with the help of a microscope. Natural diamonds will have small amounts of nitrogen, whereas lab grown diamonds will not.
As straightforward as it sounds, fill a glass of water at home to roughly three-quarters full. Separate the stone so that it is loose, and drop it into the water. Diamonds are highly dense and a genuine gem will sink to the bottom – every time. If it hovers to the surface or only partially sinks, then it is a replica.
Professional jewelers and gemologists cannot tell the difference between a lab created diamond and a natural one just by looking at it with the naked eye. They will have to use a microscope to look for the tiny differences in its inclusions that indicate how it was formed.
The main device used to determine whether a stone is mined or lab-grown is known as a DiamondView. Produced by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), the DiamondView uses UV lighting to detect a diamond's fluorescence, which is the diamond's sparkle.
The way that diamonds reflect light is unique: the inside of a real diamond should sparkle gray and white while the outside should reflect a rainbow of colors onto other surfaces. A fake diamond, on the other hand, will have rainbow colors that you can see inside the diamond as well.
For example, one old adage holds that a real diamond will cut glass, whereas a fake will not. While it's true that diamonds are hard enough to cut glass, some synthetic gems can also scratch glass.
The free 4Cs app for Android is downloadable in English and Simplified Chinese. The GIA app is also available for iOS. A retailer version, designed for use at point of sale, is downloadable for free from GIA's retailer support site www.retailer.gia.edu.
Natural diamonds often contain a small amount of nitrogen or other impurities, while lab-grown diamonds do not. Tiffany diamonds are responsibly sourced from known mines and suppliers, and the majority of our rough stones come from Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Canada.
Lab diamonds are visually identical to natural diamonds, yet come at a much lower price, which means you can get a beautiful diamond for less. However, if you prefer a rare, one-of-a-kind stone, or you're concerned about your diamond retaining its value over time, you may want to go for a naturally mined diamond.
From a monetary standpoint, however, your lab grown diamonds aren't going to hold very much value after they are taken out of the store. Almost all diamonds you buy will drop in price once worn, but lab grown diamonds are particularly susceptible to losing value after purchase.
Using a flashlight is a good way to start on how to tell if diamonds are real. Testing diamonds in this way will give a good indication of whether to proceed with further tests. Hold the diamond in the light from the flashlight, and observe how the light reacts with the stone.
The GIA iD100 was designed with a probe that is easily manipulated to reach every diamond in mounted jewelry. Due to the small, pinpoint size of the probe, you can test diamonds as small as 0.9mm in diameter.
The floating test:
If the diamond is real, it will drop to the bottom of the glass due to the high density of the stone. If the diamond is a fake, it will float on the surface of the water. Not all fake diamonds float in water so don't take the results of this test as conclusive.
Test your stone by putting it in direct sunlight and examining the colors it reflects. A real diamond will reflect both rainbow colors as well as white light. If you only get one of the two, then the diamond isn't real.
So, though genuine diamonds will scratch a mirror, its other counterparts such as quartz – 7, Moissanite – 9.25, and cubic zirconia – 8 all being hard, will also scratch the mirror. The glitch is that artificial and fake diamonds will seem genuine if you rely on the scratch test.
An ideal cut diamond shows only a few intensely bright flashes in direct sunlight. A diamond that actually looks good in sunlight splits those few flashes up into ten or twenty smaller sparkles.
A dirty stone doesn't sparkle because light simply can't enter the diamond and causes it to appear dull. So, if you notice your diamond jewelry getting cloudier overtime, it's likely due to a dirty surface and there's an easy fix to restore their luster.
Ultraviolet Light: About 30% of diamonds will glow blue under ultraviolet lights such as black light. Fake diamonds, on the other hand, will glow other colors or not at all.
This scale ranges from D (totally colorless) to Z (light yellow or brown). The color scale ranges from colorless to light yellow or light brown for lab-grown diamonds. The colors of lab-grown diamonds can also include hues such as blue, pink, yellow, green, and even black.
Most CVD synthetic diamonds are initially brown, although near-colorless crystals or those with yellowish coloration can be produced as well. HPHT processes can be used to improve the color of CVD diamonds, such as reducing brownish color so that the diamond is on the near-colorless range of the D-to-Z scale.
This means that—just like a mined diamond—a Lab Created Diamond will last a lifetime and beyond as long as they are cared for properly. This includes cleaning your ring regularly and—as you would with a mined diamond—protecting it from chemicals and lotions.
If you're holding a genuine diamond, you'll witness an intense blue color on the diamond surface. A fake gemstone will reveal itself through other colors — including green, yellow, or gray tints. The validity of this test is limited, though.
By holding a diamond close to a source of light, such as a flashlight, you can tell whether or not it's real. Watch closely for the shimmers of light that shine from the stone. A real diamond will reflect light easily, and provide you with a disco ball or rainbow-like display.