FREEDDAWG
10-17-2022, 04:02 AM
There are many great answers here, all showing major differences between natural and synthetic diamonds. However, I would like to add another difference which has not been mentioned in any of the top answers and I expect it should.
A natural diamond has been deep underground for thousands of years. They have been shielded by the sun for a very long time, and so the carbon atoms are mostly of the carbon-12 type. Synthetic diamonds are made from any sort of carbon that has been laying around on the surface of Earth for a while, coming from trees, fish, or a house. Exposed to the sun, they have absorbed more neutrons and thus have a significantly higher carbon-13 content than natural diamonds.
A natural diamond has been deep underground for thousands of years. They have been shielded by the sun for a very long time, and so the carbon atoms are mostly of the carbon-12 type. Synthetic diamonds are made from any sort of carbon that has been laying around on the surface of Earth for a while, coming from trees, fish, or a house. Exposed to the sun, they have absorbed more neutrons and thus have a significantly higher carbon-13 content than natural diamonds.