Diamond Inclusions

Inclusions play a significant role while judging the quality of a diamond. Their presence can decrease the value of a diamond. Among the four Cs, clarity determines the stone’s purity. Any kind of internal impurity is termed as Diamond Inclusion.

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The various types of diamond inclusions are:

Mineral and Crystal Inclusion: Diamonds may have smaller crystals inside them. These crystals can be smaller diamonds or some other mineral. They are trapped inside the stone during its formation. Although they are referred to as inclusions, sometimes they can actually make the diamond look more appealing.

Pinpoint Inclusion: They are minute crystals inside the stone which degrade its clarity. They are so small that they need to be viewed under magnification. When several pinpoints gather at the same area of the stone, it appears to be more distracting and hence makes the diamond look dull.

Cloud Inclusion: When several tiny crystals or pinpoint inclusions are grouped together, it emits cloudy and hazy appearance hence developing a cloud in the stone.

Needle Inclusion: Long and thin crystals are termed as needles in diamond inclusions. They are similar to pinpoint inclusions except for their shape.

Feather Inclusion: These are inclusions which actually look like feathers or fractures. Although small feathers are harmless but if they reach the diamond surface then they can probably result in its breakage.

Knot Inclusion: When an included crystal extends to the diamond’s surface, it is termed as a knot. They are a higher risk to the stone as they make the diamond less durable.

Cavity Inclusion: It is large opening in the stone and is also called as a crack which is relatively bigger in size.

Cleavage Inclusion: It is quite similar to cavity inclusion but appears to be a straight crack without any kind of feathering. This can be quite hazardous for the stone since if hit at the right place, the diamond can split down.

Girdle Fringes, Bearding Inclusion: They are hair-like lines which usually develop during the cutting process of the stone. They appear around the girdle and extend from the surface towards its internal part.

Grain Lines Inclusion: They are also called as grain lines and are formed during the formation of the diamond. These lines are formed due to irregular crystallization.

Diamond inclusions are usually not visible to the naked eye. They can be viewed on magnification of 10X. Hence finding these inclusions and differentiating them with the naked eye is nearly impossible.

Diamond Enhancement

Diamond enhancement has been requested by many diamond lovers since this increases the glitter and spark of the stone.

The technique may be applied on natural as well as synthetic diamonds. The color and clarity of the diamond can be enhanced using several techniques.

Diamond Clarity Enhancement

Laser Drilling: The number of inclusions and its size determine the stone’s clarity. This technique is used to remove any kind of inclusions within the diamond. In laser drilling, a small tunnel is bore from the diamond surface to the intended inclusion using a beam of high intensity light or infrared laser, hence forming a route inside the stone which helps in sending down a strong acid and removing the inclusions.

Fracture Filling: Fractures or cracks in a diamond make it appear cloudy and whitish. These fractures are filled with a glass-like substance which appears similar to the diamond. The cracks although don’t vanish but become invisible to the naked eye. If the fracture exists in the internal part of the diamond, then drilling might be required before filling it up, else fractures on the surface do not require any kind of drilling.

Diamond Color Enhancement

Irradiation: This process is used to alter the diamond’s color. In the irradiation technique, proton, gamma ray, neutron or electron bombardments are used such that the high energy particles modify the diamond’s crystal lattice and changes the positions of the carbon elements hence changing the color.

Coatings: In this technique the diamond is coated with a substance which hides its original color or any kind of yellow traces. This coating is not permanent and wears off with regular use of the stone.

Diamond Enhancement Facts

• Another term which is used for the same purpose is Diamond Treatment. Although Enhancement sounds like a positive phrase, it is no different than Treatment.
• Along with the dazzle and shine, this technique also increases the price of the stone.
• Since the value and cost of the stone increases with enhancements, any type of treatments done with the stone should be informed to the buyer along with some a written proof.
• A qualified gemologist can identify whether the stone had been treated and if yes, to what extent.

Identify Fake or Real Diamond

A diamond or diamond jewelry buyer are mostly in a dilemma that whether the diamond being purchased by them is fake or real one. Although the gemologist or seller can use proper tools and equipments to recognize the stone, for a naive buyer this could be a difficult task with the naked eye.

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Cubic Zirconia, Moissanite, Russian Diamonds, Diamond Nexus, Gemisis Diamond and White Sapphire belong to the category of Fake diamonds and have their unique features. Some techniques that are used to identify fake diamonds may work for just few of them and not all. For example, the cubic zirconia stone is heavier in weight than real diamond by approximately 50% provided both the stones are of same size and shape. Hence CZ can be differentiated from real diamond based on the weight factor.

Transparency Test

Another identification technique is the Transparency test. In this, the stone is placed up-side down on a paper with written characters. If the characters seem to be readable then you can be sure that the diamond is false, since written material cannot be read through a real one.

Fog Test

Blow some air on the stone from your mouth to fog it. If the fog stays on the stone, it means the stone is not real diamond. Heat gets dispersed quickly on real diamonds resulting in absorbing the fog within no time.

Ultraviolet test

When a real diamond is held under ultraviolet light, it emits blue colored light. The same goes for it when held under black color. The disadvantage of this technique is that along with fake diamonds, high quality diamonds also do not emit the intended blue colored light.

Reflection Test

A real diamond always reflects shades of the color grey and white and does not emit rainbow reflections. These rainbow reflections can be seen from fake diamonds or real but low quality diamonds.

Sparkles

Genuine diamond sparkles from all sides, no matter which angle it is view from, whereas in fake diamonds the sparkle is seen from the top only and looks dull from side angles.