Is it a Real Diamond?

Introduction

Educating yourself on how to buy diamonds is well worth the time spent. In addition to representing a man's love and commitment to his fiancee, it is also an investment. With the exception of buying a house or a car, buying a diamond ring may be one of the most expensive purchases you make. Therefore, knowing what qualities to look for and how to tell whether a diamond is authentic or fake may save you from a costly mistake.

Before exploring a diamond’s qualities, how are diamonds formed? The first diamonds were formed deep within the earth (75-125 miles) before the dinosaurs even roamed the earth, approximately 2.5 billion years ago. Even the most recently formed diamonds happened 45 million years ago.

Diamonds are composed of pure carbon. They originated from rocks made out of carbon that submerged into the earth. Temperature changes in the earth’s upper mantle forced the rocks downward where they were exposed to extreme temperatures and melted. Under the right conditions, as the liquefied material cooled, the cabon atoms bound together and formed a crystalline structure. This crystalline structure is what we know as diamonds. These diamonds were carried back up to the earth’s surface through lava in volcanic eruptions. Only 1/5 of the diamonds mined are suitable for jewelry. The rest are used for industrial purposes.

The Four C’s

Understanding the Four C's is critical when learning how to buy diamonds. A diamond's quality and value is based on the Four C's. The Four C's are color, clarity, cut, and carat.

• With a white diamond, color refers to the yellowness of a stone. It is caused by either chemical impurities or structural defects. Diamonds acts act as a prism. They divide light into colors, and the reflection of these colors is called fire. However, color reduces a diamonds ability to reflect color. Therefore, the more color a white diamond has, the less desirable it is. Color is graded N through Z. N grades are completely colorless while Z grades have the most color. Unlike white diamonds, colored diamonds or fancy diamonds are graded differently. These diamonds are graded by the intensity of their color. The grades are determined by an intensity ranging from faint to fancy deep. The more intense the color, the more rare and valuable diamond. Fancy diamonds come in the colors of steel, gray, blue, yellow, orange, pink to purple, red, green, brown, and black. Of these colors, the rarest are red, green, blue, orange, and pink. The most common colors are shades of yellow and brown. Since only 1 in 10,000 diamonds have a natural color, fancy diamonds are more rare and expensive. The more intense the color, the more expensive.
• Clarity - Clarity is the diamond’s ability to pass light. Inclusions or birthmark’s are natural and occur during formation. They can affect the diamond's ability to pass light. Inclusions can be scratches, mineral traces, or any other flaw which detracts from the diamond‘s beauty. There are five types of flaws. These flaws are pinpoint, carbons, feathers, clouds, and crystal growth. The most common flaw is a pinpoint. It is small, white dot on the surface of the stone. Carbons are like pinpoints except the dot is black. Clouds are hazy areas within the diamond. A crystal growth looks like a smaller diamond within a diamond. Less than 1% of diamonds are flawless. When purchasing a stone, you may want to remember that flaws are less apparent in brillant cuts.

• Cut - Since the cut of a diamond affects a diamond’s brillance, this may be the most important factor to consider when buying a diamond. There are two basic types of cuts: the step cut and the brillant cut. The step cut has paralell facets that look like steps runnig across the length or width of the stone. When the corners of a step cut are rounded off, it is called an emerald cut. Unlike the step cut, the brillant cut has triangular facets surrounding the stone with a flat table. Both the width and depth can affect how light travels through and exits from a stone. The step cut has a more glassy appearance whereas the brillant cut is more shiney.
• Carat - The word carat originates from carob bean. Since carob beans are all the same weight, gem dealers used to balance their scales with them. Today a carat equals 200 milligrams. The carat is divided into points. One carat equals 100 points.

Tests to Determine a Real Diamond

Based on these qualites, how can you tell if your diamond is real? A common belief is a diamond can scratch glass. While this is true, other stones can scratch glass too. Another common belief is if you the turn the diamond upside down, you should not be able to read a newspaper through it. However, if the diamond is cut shallow, you can read a newspaper through it.. Others think if you put the diamond in your mouth so it develops a fog, the fog instantaneously disappears with a real diamond. While these tests have an element of truth, the following tests are more indicative a real diamond.

• Ultra-violet light - The majority of diamonds will glow blue under ultra-violet light. On the other hand, fake diamonds will glow other colors or not at all. When a stone does glow blue, it may indicate a diamond is not as valuable. Diamonds with blue flourescence are worth 20% less.
• Weight - When comparing two stones of the same size, a cubic zicronia will weigh 50% less.
• Reflection - Because of a diamond’s index of refraction, a diamond will reflect shades of grades. If a stone reflects colors, it is not real.
• Perfection - If the stone does not have any flaws under magnification, it may be a fake. Remember, less than 1% of diamonds are flawless.
• Setting - Examine the setting. Is the setting gold? Genuine gold rings have the carat marked on the inside of the ring in very fine print. If the ring has discoloration, it is not gold, and the stone is probably not a diamond either.

• Diamond tester - Jewelers have a thermal diamond tester. Through the use of a metallic probe, it electronically tracks heat loss through a stone. Diamonds are heat conductors and absorb heat faster than other stones with the exception of moissanite. Moissanite is created in labs, but it is very similar in appearance to a diamond and harder.

Conclusion

Even though understanding the Four C's can give you an edge on how to buy diamonds, it can still be hard to determind a diamond's authenticity. Unless you're an expert, shop at a reputable jeweler. Furthermore, a diamond should be accompanied with certification papers. If there are no certification papers or you suspect the seller is unscrupulous, get a second opinion.