Scientists can now produce cost-effective, lab-grown diamonds that look like natural diamonds in as little as 150 minutes.
Researchers from South Korea have created tiny diamonds that could be a more environmentally friendly alternative to natural diamonds.
Researchers combined silicon and a series of liquid metals with carbon gas at extreme temperatures, reducing them to carbon atoms that combine with silicon to form diamonds.
In the U.S., a one-carat "princess-cut" natural diamond costs an average of $2,500, while a lab-grown diamond sells for just $500.
Diamonds take billions of years to fully form, which makes them more expensive for buyers, but lab-grown alternatives can save you thousands of dollars.
Lab-grown diamonds are indistinguishable from natural diamonds to the naked eye, but they look very different under the microscope, which is why the price gap is so large.
The researchers mixed liquid gallium, iron, nickel and silicon into a crucible — a cup-shaped container used to melt the substance — and heated it to 1,037 degrees Celsius.
The metal in the crucible is exposed to methane and hydrogen, which dissolve into carbon gas.
When the remaining carbon gas is combined with silicon, it forces the carbon atoms to bind together, forming small crystals.
Rodney Ruoff, co-author of the study, said silicon was the key to success, telling Science: "If we don't add some silicon, we can't get diamonds." ”
Ruoff and his team tested crystal growth for 15 minutes and 30 minutes, but found that only a small portion of the diamond crystals protruded from the metal surface of the crucible.
When the researchers examined it at 60 minutes, the diamond continued to grow, but it didn't fully form until 150 minutes.
Despite major breakthroughs, the crystals are still only 100 nanometers wide – about the size of a typical virus – but the researchers are confident that they will be able to refine their methods and eventually be able to create larger diamonds.
"A lot of labs around the world are going to start experimenting," Ruoff said.
If his prediction comes true, it could revolutionize the already expanding lab-grown diamond industry.
In 2015, lab-grown diamonds sold less than 1% of global sales, but by the end of last year, that percentage had jumped to about 20%.
This may be a response to lower prices, as the cost of lab-grown diamonds is only a fraction of what people pay for natural grown diamonds.
A two-carat round-cut diamond, with its high color and clarity, typically costs between $13,000 and $14,000, but lab-grown diamonds cost only $1,000.
"The price of lab-grown diamonds is falling. The reason is simply supply and demand. So many manufacturers are popping up and flooding the market with them, which is causing prices to fall," Mehul Sompura, CEO of Diamond Hedge, a diamond price comparison tool, told CBS MoneyWatch.
"Most of the time, it's hard to tell the difference between the two, but it's related to impurities, and the growth pattern can be seen with a microscope," Sompura said. He added: "You won't get your money back, that's the main problem. ”
Researchers aren't sure how long it takes for natural diamonds to form because it's not a continuous process.
A diamond may begin to grow in the upper mantle of the Earth's crust, but this process may be interrupted by climate change conditions, including temperature, pressure exerted on it, or the amount of carbon it is exposed to.
Because of this, diamonds may sit in the earth's crust for millions or hundreds of millions of years before they begin to grow again.
Lab-grown diamonds can be a long-term alternative to blood diamonds – also known as conflict diamonds – which are mined in war zones and sold to fund ongoing wars.
It can also replace diamond mining, which can damage the surrounding land and release harmful chemicals.
For every carat of diamonds mined, nearly 100 square feet of land are destroyed, producing 5,790 pounds of mineral waste, and demand is expected to increase to 292 million carats, according to Greenmatch, a sustainability and renewable energy organization.
"Diamonds are ingrained in our culture," leading diamond industry analyst Paul Zimnisky told ABC News.
"I think as human beings, we just crave these rare, precious gems and metals. It's not practical, but it makes us feel good. ”