Have you ever looked at a diamond and seen little specks or some dots that are black embedded into the stone? Did this make you doubt the authenticity of the diamonds?
Did it leave you wondering what the black spots would be and how they got there? Worry no more as this article will tell you what the black spots are and how they got in the diamonds. Read to the end to know how to check if the spots are real or fake.
First, what are black spots in real diamonds?
Black spots in real diamonds are just carbon deposits left out during the diamond formation. Diamonds are made of carbon and we can see traces of carbon in a pure form or as graphite in real diamonds.
They may appear as lines on planes or as black spots which is a very undesirable trait in real diamonds, especially the non-colored ones.
Why there is a black spot in a real diamond?
During the formation of diamonds, heat and pressure are applied to carbon deposits that change to form the diamonds. In this process, some carbon may be left out or not completely change its form to the crystalline carbon form which is diamonds.
The carbon traces represent themselves as dark spots in the diamonds. Another way you may see the carbon present itself in diamonds is through thin black or grey lines.
During formation, the diamond may sheer off due to the pressure around it forming thin cracks throughout the rock. Some carbon deposits find their way into those thin cracks and don’t get to change form.
The result is a black deposit of greyish face if the carbon turns to form graphite. This type of carbon deposit is easy to deal with while processing the diamonds as polishing will clear the face.
On the other hand, black deposits are not easy to remove since they are found deep in the rock making it hard to remove all of them during cutting and that’s why you will find lack spots on real diamonds.
So, do fake diamonds have black spots? Why?
Fake diamonds do not have black spots since they are artificially made using different materials and these black spots are undesirable diamond traits.
People love when diamonds are clear and shiny with no form of impurities. However, manufacturers have discovered that black spots convince people that diamonds are real.
They have gone ahead and formulated ways to add black spots in fake diamonds just to dupe people who have an untrained eye that the fake diamonds are real. Nowadays you can find high-quality fake diamonds having black spots that look so real.
You need to be careful when buying diamonds as black spots only won’t tell you if a diamond is a real one or a good fake. You may use other methods to check the authenticity of the stone that you are about to buy
How about lab-grown diamonds? Any black spot in it? Why?
Lab-grown diamonds also known as CVD-grown diamonds are artificial diamonds made in laboratories that try to emulate natural diamond formation conditions.
They are grown in molten metal to provide high heat conditions and very high pressure is applied to convert the carbon to crystal form.
Since there is carbon used in the growing, the diamonds are bound to have some carbon traces that did not crystallize and other inclusions and blemishes like metal impurities.
The carbon will manifest on the diamonds as black spots. These spots are very small and sometimes need magnification since they cannot be seen by the naked eye.
This is because inside the lab, conditions are controlled and monitored to form very pure crystals and the result is the diamonds with very little or no black spots.
Conclusion
Most clear diamonds will have black spots even if they are not visible to the naked eye. It is a natural flaw that happens during the formation process and cannot be avoided.
Diamond cutters and jewelers try so much to remove and avoid the spots with their cuts so that they can get cut diamonds without impurities.
Fake diamonds are now coming with the black spots too as manufacturers advance in the production techniques. This means you have to be very careful when you are buying diamonds as the quality of fakes is astonishing.
I would advise buying diamonds from reputable dealers who will give you authenticity certificates. If you are not sure if a diamond is fake or real, I suggest you use other methods to verify if the diamond is real as the black spot may not give you conclusive results.
You can use the glass of water test, the UV light test, the fog test, or you can use a jeweler’s loop to test the quality and authenticity of the diamond.
Stephanie is a jewelry lover when she was a teenager. Her major was fashion design when she was in college. She is a jewelry designer at SOQ Jewelry and other design companies. Now she is also a writer for our website. She writes a lot of designs&brands posts with very actionable tips.