The $1 Trillion Problem Diamonds Can Solve

Polycrystalline diamonds aren't nearly as pretty as monocrystalline ones are, but they seem to be much easier to produce - especially if you're trying to grow them onto a computer chip.

...which I would never have thought to do but which seems to be really desirable because diamond is a phenomenal conductor of heat, seemingly an improvement on aluminum as a heat sink for electronics on a massive scale.

image from YouTube video above

All that's left is to grow those diamonds via chemical vapor deposition - which is also incredibly cool.

How do they do artificial diamonds?

I read an article recently about the possibility of using diamond as a building material. As I watch this video, though and see the massive amount of effort that goes into creating even these relatively tiny diamonds, I'm thinking that we're still a ways off from making any sorts of floors or windows from this carbon allotrope anytime soon.

I love the use of concentrated hydrochloric acid to get rid of the metal slug around the final - and hopeful - diamond.

Making Diamonds with a Blowtorch

This video creates some interesting discussions about how diamonds are made, natural and synthetic, as well as allotropes of carbon.  Its also fun to talk about the cost involved in this experiment and why its not worth running a blowtorch for 8 hours to make tiny diamonds.