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Difference Between Real and Fake Diamond

Real vs Fake Diamond
 

Real and Fake diamonds appear the same and are able to fool any regular person unless the person knows the difference between them. These diamonds appear bright and shiny; it is very hard to tell the difference unless you are a skilled appraiser. However, there are some simple facts that will allow you to identify fake diamonds even by yourself. These tests include the weight, appearance, the way light travels through, and the way it behaves when put under an ultraviolet light. This article will help you understand the difference between real and fake diamond using these tests.

What is a Real Diamond?

A real diamond has a high refractor index. This means that the light that passes through a real diamond bends easily. Real diamonds are also made from compressed carbon, which is the product of a natural process of pressure and weight. Real diamonds when immersed in ultraviolet light tends to glow blue, this is an indication that it is a real diamond.

Hope diamond

What is a Fake Diamond?

Fake diamonds, on the other hand, have a low refractor index, meaning that light will not bend as much when it passes through fake diamonds. This is proven when you can see clear images through the diamond. Fake diamonds are made from glass, and silicon carbide. The latter has the same texture of a diamond so it is easy to confuse one from the other.

Synthetic or fake diamond

What is the difference between Real and Fake Diamond?

The difference between a real and a fake diamond cannot be so apparent. However, there are a series of tests that can subject such diamonds into intense scrutiny. With the help of these tests, it is quite possible to tell them apart.

• Real diamonds weigh much heavier compared to fake diamonds.

• Real diamonds are made from carbon while fake diamonds are made from glass and silicon carbide.

• Real diamonds possess a high refractor index while the refractor index is low in fake diamonds. High refractor index makes images seen through a real diamond unclear and obscured. The fake diamonds possess a more clear and transparent quality.

• When subjected to ultraviolet light, real diamonds emit a blue glow while fake diamonds emit a yellowish glow.

• Another quality between real and fake diamonds is that fake diamonds will tend to appear like high-end glass while real diamonds seem less sparkling.

• Real diamonds appear conservative and not as flamboyant as fake diamonds.

While the real diamonds are more pursued, the fake diamonds can simply apply for many aesthetic and practical reasons because of the high price tag that comes with the real diamonds. The key is to know when to use fake and real diamonds, since both of these products can go hand in hand.

 

Images Courtesy:

  1. Hope diamond via Wikicommons (Public Domain)
  2. Synthetic diamond by Steve Jurvetson (CC BY 2.0)