Diamonds are about to lose the title of

People still think that diamonds are the hardest material on the planet. But no, the No. 1 diamond is about to wobble by these new materials.

If asked what is the hardest material on the planet , many people will answer that: diamond. With its high value and tremendous hardness, it is possible to cut glass, diamond becomes a milestone that scientists always try to overcome by searching for materials with similar and cheaper hardness.

Currently, diamonds are still the hardest material in the world, but can this title be kept?

In fact, most of those who have studied in the Chemistry program know that diamonds are a form of carbon in the form of extremely strong tetrahedral crystals . This has created its unparalleled hardness. If using a unit of hardness measurement, ordinary steels have an average hardness of about 80 GPa while diamonds have a hardness of up to 478 GPa.

However, diamonds only have absolute hardness at room temperature because it only needs to heat up to 800 degrees Celsius, its chemical properties change completely and hardness also disappears. Therefore, finding a material similar to diamond and durable with external impacts such as temperature or chemical properties of the environment is one of the top objectives of the current material technology. . Here are the names that can "usurp" of natural diamonds today.

Boron Nitride

Boron Nitride is widely used in the automotive industry and spacecraft manufacturing.

First produced in 1957, Boron Nitride (BN) in the form of a tetrahedral crystal like diamond has a hardness of up to 400 GPa. Different from carbon atoms linked together, the structure of Boron Nitride tetrahedra possesses the terminals that are extremely durable BN molecules under the effect of temperature. Therefore, BN is widely used in the automotive industry and spacecraft manufacturing. In fact, the patient also has another form of enmity that the hexagonal crystal structure (w-BN) is theoretically about 18% harder than diamond but it is very rare in nature because it only appears in spraying cases. Volcanic movement and production also require extremely difficult technical requirements.

Artificial diamonds

Artificial diamonds are often used in optical engineering industries and high-end electronic chips.

After discovering diamonds is a form of carbon, the scientific community has spent a lot of effort to study how to create diamonds with what is available. Even so, it was not until 1953 that the world could see diamonds made by humans and machines with a cost of only about half that of natural diamonds, but with almost the same hardness. Even some of the prototype in the 1970s had outstanding hardness of up to 600 GPa. Artificial diamonds are often used in optical engineering industries and high-end electronic chips.

Artificial diamonds are synthesized according to two main methods: HPHT high pressure High temperature method, which uses extremely high temperature and pressure to reproduce the environment like the internal diamond regeneration environment. The ground and the chemical Vapor Deposition CVD method used chemical evaporation of carbon gas compound under the action of plasma thermal rays to create a molecular separation of gas until only residual remains. C cells deposit and grow on available diamond germ.

Q-carbon

Recently, scientists at North Carolina State University have found a new shape of carbon elements with superior hardness compared to diamonds, about 60% higher. Another interesting thing is that Q-carbon can turn into diamonds if there are appropriate effects under normal room temperature conditions.

Q-carbon can turn into diamonds if there are appropriate effects.

To create Q-carbon, scientists used an amorphous carbon layer peeled off a substrate that could be sapphire, glass or plastic. They then fired a laser pulse into it for a period of 200 nanoseconds, heating it up to a temperature of about 3726 degrees Celsius and immediately cooled to create sparkling Q-carbon crystals. diamonds.

Q-carbon will be a major factor in producing completely new types of electronic displays in the future.

If this method is more refined and widely used, Q-carbon can become an extraordinary material used in high-tech industries. In particular, with its magnetic and light sensitivity, Q-carbon will be a major factor in producing completely new types of electronic displays in the future. Besides, Q-carbon's sparkling beauty will most likely cause diamonds to diminish their value.