Apollo Diamond
Encyclopedia
Apollo Diamond Inc. was a company based in Boston
, Massachusetts
that produced nearly flawless single crystal
diamond
wafers and crystals for the optoelectronics
, nanotechnology
, and consumer gem
markets. The company pioneered chemical vapor deposition
(CVD) for the production of gem-sized synthetic diamond
crystals, leading to several U.S. patent
s on the process. The company advertises color
less gems, in contrast to existing synthetic diamonds which are usually colored.
Many assets of Apollo Diamond were acquired by SCIO Diamond Technology in 2011, which is producing synthetic diamond at its South Carolina facility using Apollo Diamond technology.
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
that produced nearly flawless single crystal
Crystal
A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituent atoms, molecules, or ions are arranged in an orderly repeating pattern extending in all three spatial dimensions. The scientific study of crystals and crystal formation is known as crystallography...
diamond
Diamond
In mineralogy, diamond is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic crystal structure called a diamond lattice. Diamond is less stable than graphite, but the conversion rate from diamond to graphite is negligible at ambient conditions...
wafers and crystals for the optoelectronics
Optoelectronics
Optoelectronics is the study and application of electronic devices that source, detect and control light, usually considered a sub-field of photonics. In this context, light often includes invisible forms of radiation such as gamma rays, X-rays, ultraviolet and infrared, in addition to visible light...
, nanotechnology
Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally, nanotechnology deals with developing materials, devices, or other structures possessing at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometres...
, and consumer gem
Gemstone
A gemstone or gem is a piece of mineral, which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments...
markets. The company pioneered chemical vapor deposition
Chemical vapor deposition of diamond
Chemical vapor deposition of diamond or CVD is a method of producing synthetic diamond by creating the circumstances necessary for carbon atoms in a gas to settle on a substrate in crystalline form....
(CVD) for the production of gem-sized synthetic diamond
Synthetic diamond
Synthetic diamond is diamond produced in a technological process; as opposed to natural diamond, which is created in geological processes. Synthetic diamond is also widely known as HPHT diamond or CVD diamond, denoting the production method, High-Pressure High-Temperature synthesis and Chemical...
crystals, leading to several U.S. patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
s on the process. The company advertises color
Color
Color or colour is the visual perceptual property corresponding in humans to the categories called red, green, blue and others. Color derives from the spectrum of light interacting in the eye with the spectral sensitivities of the light receptors...
less gems, in contrast to existing synthetic diamonds which are usually colored.
Many assets of Apollo Diamond were acquired by SCIO Diamond Technology in 2011, which is producing synthetic diamond at its South Carolina facility using Apollo Diamond technology.
External links
- Apollo Diamond website (defunct: tested on 2011.10.30)
- The New Diamond Age, WiredWired (magazine)Wired is a full-color monthly American magazine and on-line periodical, published since January 1993, that reports on how new and developing technology affects culture, the economy, and politics...
, September 11, 2003 - Diamonds on Demand, SmithsonianSmithsonian (magazine)Smithsonian is the official journal published by the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. The first issue was published in 1970.-History:...
, June, 2008 - US Patents awarded to Apollo Diamond
- USAToday: Nanotechnology's everywhere, May 2005