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Nanotech Brings Cheap Flat TVs From Diamond Dust

neutron_p writes "Nanotech scientists are going to develop new TV display technology made from diamond dust. It opens up the possibility of cheaper and more power efficient flat panel displays, for use in wide screen digital TVs and many other applications. Toshiba recently announced plans to launch a television based on a new flat-panel display technology called SED (Surface-conduction Electron-emitter Display) in 2005. Sony and others have been working for several years on another technology called FED (Field Emission Display) but that too has yet to reach commercialization."

193 comments

  1. Nanothech? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Nice spelling.

    1. Re:Nanothech? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Donth make fun of people with lithps. The cant helpth it if their crippthled.

    2. Re:Nanothech? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Hey, nanothechnology ith the waith of the thuthure. Ith going thoo retholuthunith ethrything, including the way we speath.

  2. cheap? by confusion · · Score: 4, Funny
    Combining nanotech (expensive) with diamonds (expensive) yields cheap monitors?

    It's been a long day, so I know I must be missing something

    Jerry
    http://www.syslog.org/

    1. Re:cheap? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      " Combining nanotech (expensive) with diamonds (expensive) yields cheap monitors?"

      Wow, and only for 1 million pounds? If the technology is so cheap, why has no one developed it before?

    2. Re:Cheap? by Gadgetfreak · · Score: 3, Informative

      Diamond dust is a very common by-product from industries that use larger diamonds Synthetic diamonds are also a lot cheaper than most people think. Diamond-embedded grinding and cutting tools have been cheaply mass-produced for quite some time now. Compared to current LCD/plasma display costs, I don't think it'd be crazy expensive.
      I guess it depends how perfect you want it.

      --
      "No fair, you changed the outcome by measuring it!" - Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth
    3. Re:cheap? by chochos · · Score: 4, Informative

      Probably synthetic diamonds, you know, the ones made in high-pressure ovens that cost about $50 and are the bigger than a fist, and are great for this kind of stuff. There was an article on Wired a while back, which I think was also mentioned in /. about this technology. But since nanotech is being mentioned this time, then probably now the diamond dust is being created by nanobots?

    4. Re:cheap? by G-Mac123 · · Score: 1

      fyi: Nanotech is not synonymous with nanobots. Nanotech is most often associated with computer processors and the like. In addition, they are nanotech scientists, they did not say which technology they were going to use.

    5. Re:cheap? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well they didn't say what type of diamonds. They could be man made ones and/or ones which aren't white diamonds. What do you think they use in commercial diamond tip drills?

    6. Re:cheap? by confusion · · Score: 1
      After all, the article had nano-content.

      Hard to say how the diamond dust would be made, but I'm sure there are probably more than a few ways (the like the way c-60 is grown).

      It just strikes me as funny to see something saying "we'll take 2 really expensive things and make something really cheap!"

      Jerry
      http://www.syslog.org/

    7. Re:Cheap? by kesuki · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Diamonds are actually cheap they come from one of the most common elements, carbon... DeBerrs controls 80% of the worlds gem quality diamond productions, and they refuse to sell more gem quality diamonds that the number of engagments in a year... they actually cut supply below demand*, thus making the price inflate. as an industrial material, cutting diamonds and diamond dust are market priced by more conventional market forces, and since most diamonds that come out of a mine are not gem quality, that makes industrial grade diamond products relatively affordable.

      *= Yes I'm aware, Russia and canada are also producing gem quality diamonds, but those mines can't exactly afford to flood the market so far that diamonds plummet in value, because thier mines have less diamonds than the debeer's mines.

    8. Re:Cheap? by TheGorilla · · Score: 1

      it's simple really, instead of using whole diamonds they grind them up. Now if we could only apply this technological breakthrough on women.

      Look dear, I got you a diamond dust ring.

    9. Re:Cheap? by Apro+im · · Score: 1

      I actually got the disstinction between expensive engagement diamonds and industrial dust - it's just that sometimes, one has to feign ignorance to make a bad joke.

    10. Re:cheap? by nonregistered · · Score: 1

      You know, like nuclear power will be so cheap we won't have to meter it.

    11. Re:Cheap? by bigpat · · Score: 1

      "*= Yes I'm aware, Russia and canada are also producing gem quality diamonds, but those mines can't exactly afford to flood the market so far that diamonds plummet in value, because thier mines have less diamonds than the debeer's mines."

      not to mention that they are very happy to be selling their products at artificially inflated prices. Besides DeBeers could easily undercut their prices if they ever tried a price war, but that would be mutually destructive. If anything the Canadian diamonds have been marketed as a more exclusive item.

    12. Re:Cheap? by Tackhead · · Score: 1
      > it's simple really, instead of using whole diamonds they grind them up. Now if we could only apply this technological breakthrough on women.

      Been there, done that. Threw Saddam in jail for it.

      Both Saddam and the US lost money on the deal. Probably like diamond-based flat-screen TVs, neither the solution to the problem nor the solution to the solution were particularly cheap.

    13. Re:Cheap? by Gadgetfreak · · Score: 1

      Yeah... I'm surrounded by co workers who insist on making the worst jokes and puns imaginable at every possible opportunity. I let my guard down a bit when I'm on Slashdot, and this one slipped through... dammit..

      --
      "No fair, you changed the outcome by measuring it!" - Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth
    14. Re:cheap? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It was my understanding that over 75% or so of the worlds diamonds were used in other industrial applications (e.g. rock drilling,etc...) rather than jewelry (therefore "sort of" explaining their cost).

    15. Re:cheap? by advance512 · · Score: 1

      The diamonds cost 50$, not the ovens..

      The ovens would have to be very very expensive, heating up the raw material (to be carbonized) up to 3000 degrees celcius and applying pressure of hundreds of thousands kilograms per CM^2.

      Haven't heard of anyone making such ovens. Anyone care to point me at details?

    16. Re:cheap? by drinkypoo · · Score: 2, Informative

      GE invented the process for making diamonds with an array of hydraulic presses, I believe in the sixties. Pressure is required.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    17. Re:cheap? by Jeffrey+Baker · · Score: 2, Informative

      That isn't how they make them. The giant synthetic diamonds are made by chemical vapor deposition (CVD).

    18. Re:cheap? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      First of all high pressure diamond ovens are waaaaaaay more expensive than $50 -you need 50000 times atmospheric pressure!

      But really cheap diamonds are made under vacuum using CVD (chemical vapor deposition) techniques.

    19. Re:Cheap? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah, making diamond dusts is pretty cheap.

    20. Re:Cheap? by tunah · · Score: 1
      it's simple really, instead of using whole diamonds they grind them up. Now if we could only apply this technological breakthrough on women.

      I'm missing something... grind women up? You're not bitter, are you?

      --
      Free Java games for your phone: Tontie, Sokoban
    21. Re:cheap? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      True, but CVD diamonds aren't single crystall diamonds like the HTPT (high pressure/high temperature) ones.

    22. Re:Cheap? by kesuki · · Score: 2

      Diamond prices did fall when the soviet union collapsed, and when the canadians found diamonds, but the bottom never really fell out of the diamond market... 1 carrot of diamonds below $2,000 would have been unthinkable, in any type of cut, back in the golden days of communist russia and debeer's and yet on froogle I can find a nice 3 stone 1 ct total band for $800. So yeah, there has been some loss in control over diamond pricing, but it's still at a level that DeBerrs can survive with.http://www.google.com/froogle?q=diamond&btnG= Search+Froogle

    23. Re:cheap? by ReeprFlame · · Score: 1

      There was a show dedicated to the making of real diamonds on either Dateline or Discovery a while back. It went over how carbon can be converted into diamonds through the heating and pressure process taking several days as mentioned somewhat above. The diamonds are less than natural diamonds but significantly more than $50. In addition to that, however, the synthetic ones are completely decieving to jewlers, lust, purity, and every other aspect [including molecular composition]. The only way to tell it to get a test that can tell how much time it took to compress into that molecular compound. Rather interesting and here is one good use for it...

    24. Re:cheap? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah, IIRC a synthetic 2 centimeter diameter diamond goes for $50000, but don't quote me on that.

      A synthetic 1 carat diamond is about $10.

    25. Re:cheap? by abertoll · · Score: 1

      Maybe they just use cubic zirconia

      --
      "he drew his sword Ringil that glittered like ice... and he wounded Morgoth with seven wounds..."
    26. Re:cheap? by Jeffrey+Baker · · Score: 2, Funny

      There is a US company with a patent on making monocrystalline CVD diamonds. I think they can make them up to a few square inches now. There was a very popular story about them in WiReD magazine.

    27. Re:Cheap? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Considering Silicon is more expensive than gold per weight and has been for over a decade this really isnt a new concept...

    28. Re:cheap? by funklord9 · · Score: 1

      This will become obsolete once I unveil my solid gold LCD technology!

    29. Re:cheap? by mseidl · · Score: 1

      Real diamonds are not exspensive either.(Wholesale) There is a ton of markup in diamonds.

    30. Re:cheap? by Jeff+DeMaagd · · Score: 1

      Industrial diamonds are of a lower grade than jewelry diamonds.

    31. Re:cheap? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Nope, different process. The Wired/Slashdot article is for creating diamonds that are big --from the size of a peanut to the size of a grapefruit (or larger) using chemical vapor deposition. The diamonds made here are diamond dust. You make them by putting pure carbon (or pretty close to pure) in a very powerful hydraulic press. You heat the carbon under pressure, and you get little tiny diamonds (diamond dust) out (along with carbon). They really are diamonds, and they really are small. Good enough for tv though.

    32. Re:cheap? by flubbergust · · Score: 1

      The nanbots dont clean very well and leave a lot of diamond dust in the corners and under the carpets.

    33. Re:cheap? by dbIII · · Score: 1
      Combining nanotech (expensive) with diamonds (expensive) yields cheap monitors?
      The gems are expensive but the dust is relatively cheap. I've used the dust as an abrasive and really have ended up with diamonds on the soles of my shoes.
  3. Ron White quote by Phu5ion · · Score: 2, Funny

    Diamonds... That'll shut her up... For a minute at least.

    --
    Slashdot is kind of like Playboy; we aren't here to read the articles.
    1. Re:Ron White quote by JWW · · Score: 1

      I can see it now. "No, really, honey its not a TV, its a 60" wide rectangluar DIAMOND" ;-)

    2. Re:Ron White quote by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What is "nanothech?" Does Taco even preview his articles or glance at them after posting? Does he even load his own site?

  4. Cheap? by Apro+im · · Score: 0

    Does it say something about the cost of electronics when it makes it cheaper to make them out of diamond dust?

  5. I think thomeone by Almonday · · Score: 3, Funny

    ...neeth to theck their thepelling, thister.

    --
    Posterity, my posterior.
    1. Re:I think thomeone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I know. The submitter was *obviously* German, and so the correct spelling is "Nanothek."

    2. Re:I think thomeone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny


      Igor, is that you??

  6. Pefect anniversary gift by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    This diamond television means I can now buy the expensive tv I've always wanted and call it an anniversary gift.

    "But, honey, you said you wanted diamonds, right?"

    1. Re:Pefect anniversary gift by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      rofl, it would almost be worth it to see the look on her face to pull a stunt like this, and for once the production date isn't 5-10 years, but this coming year too

    2. Re:Pefect anniversary gift by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I believe Mitsubishi already made use of that theme with their Black Diamond range of TVs and VCRs...

    3. Re:Pefect anniversary gift by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Perfect way to get cutoff from any pussy for a LONG, LONG time.

  7. So informative by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

    The article has so little information! it describes nothing of the technology except that it's going to be worked on.

    1. Re:So informative by confusion · · Score: 1, Insightful
      I thought I had clicked on the wrong link at first. It is completely devoid of anything useful.

      Jerry
      http://www.syslog.org/

    2. Re:So informative by gaber1187 · · Score: 4, Informative
      The main publications page for this group is listed here:
      http://www.chm.bris.ac.uk/pt/diamond/publicat.htm


      Looks like they are using Diamond Like Carbon quite often... so its a quasi-zinc-blend structure apparently.


      With field emission they are generating electrons so somehow the electrons get enough energy to reach the vacuum level. I wonder how efficient this is since diamond's bandgap is something like 5.5 eV.


      -Gabe

    3. Re:So informative by AresTheImpaler · · Score: 0, Troll
      Re:So informative (Score:2, Insightful)
      by confusion (14388)on Thu Dec 16, '04 03:56 PM (#11109680)
      (http://www.syslog.org/)
      I thought I had clicked on the wrong link at first. It is completely devoid of anything useful.

      Your nick makes so much sense now...

    4. Re:So informative by gaber1187 · · Score: 3, Informative

      Ahh, I just figured out the answer. It says that diamonds have a Negative Electron Affinity. Which means that the vacuum level is more stable than the conduction band. Once the electron is excited to the higher state equalling the difference between the bandgap (5.5 eV) and the NEA value (which is 2.4 eV on hydrogen saturated surfaces) , the electron just flies out of the material instead of becoming delocalized into the crystal. So basically what they are doing is replacing the cathode ray tube as the source of the electrons. First flat speakers, now flat tv's!, cool!

  8. Diamond Dust?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    We should call Shiva!

  9. TV's made of diamonds by loteck · · Score: 4, Funny

    Finally, men and women will be able to agree that buying a bigger one is a good idea.

  10. diamond tv? by xlyz · · Score: 0, Redundant

    make your wife happy with a luxury present and enjoy watching superbowl on it

  11. oblig *nix joke by ChipMonk · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    How long until the AWK (Advanced Watchable and Karryable) and GREP (Graphics-Rendering Efficient Power) technologies come out?

    1. Re:oblig *nix joke by TimToady · · Score: 1

      On the other hand, given current trends in TV fare, Pathologically Eclectic Rubbish Lister won't have to change its name.

  12. Use Synthetics! by Evil+W1zard · · Score: 1

    Wired had a great article in the past about how the synthetic diamond industry is breaking through, which means that quality synthetic diamonds may soon be cheap to use for electronics purposes. (Real diamonds are more expensive just they are naturally made, but synthetics can be virtually indistinguishable quality-wise.)

    --
    News Reporters Make Tasty Polar Bear Treats!
  13. SED vs. FED? by chochos · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Is this some kind of reference to Neal Stephenson's Age of Diamonds? The feed was the way nanotech was controlled by the Victorians, and the seed was the way to free it from that control... I know this is offtopic but a post about real nanotech mentioning SED vs FED was just... strange.

    1. Re:SED vs. FED? by youlogee · · Score: 1
    2. Re:SED vs. FED? by auf_weiderzen · · Score: 1

      I'm just concerned that Neal Stephenson wrote about an interactive _book_, but the real concern seems to be cheap TVs. sigh.

      --
      Lusers, lusers, everywhere and not a LART in sight.
    3. Re:SED vs. FED? by worst_name_ever · · Score: 4, Funny
      Neal Stephenson's Age of Diamonds?

      I always thought his earlier book The Snow That Crashed was better.

      --

      In Soviet Rush, today's Tom Sawyer gets high on you.
    4. Re:SED vs. FED? by idontgno · · Score: 2, Funny

      Oh, man, you completely botched that title. It's really The Crash that Snowed. Ranks right up there with "Sale of Two Titties" by Mile Pikkens with four 'm's and a silent 'q'.

      --
      Welcome to the Panopticon. Used to be a prison, now it's your home.
    5. Re:SED vs. FED? by chochos · · Score: 1

      Shit, you're right. Yeah, Diamond Age. Sorry. Oh, and very funny, BTW.

    6. Re:SED vs. FED? by Moofie · · Score: 1

      Yeah, because you sure couldn't use a cheap, flat, high-res TV as the screen for an interactive book, could you?

      *dope slap*

      --
      Why yes, I AM a rocket scientist!
  14. What a perfect use of new technology. by Canthros · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Bring stupidity into my living room with crystal clarity. I can't wait.

    --
    Canthros
    1. Re:What a perfect use of new technology. by TomorrowPlusX · · Score: 1

      I agree. I can see the worthless sitcom of the month + advertising *just fine* on my 20 year old zenith.

      Admittedly, I had to buy an adapter so I could watch DVDs :/

      --

      lorem ipsum, dolor sit amet
    2. Re:What a perfect use of new technology. by JimmehAH · · Score: 1

      TVs aren't the only use for this new technology.
      I think computer users of all types (designers, programmers, gamers and casual users) would love a large, cheap flat panel display.

    3. Re:What a perfect use of new technology. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sounds like you're all stocked up already. Go sell crazy somewhere else.

    4. Re:What a perfect use of new technology. by Canthros · · Score: 1

      Of course they would. Hell, of course I would love a large, chear flat panel display. My 17" inch monitor is old, kind of fuzzy, and does not respond well to large resolutions. My TV was put on the fritz by the TiVo (I think--it's one of those long, uninteresting stories, and involves no actual flaws in either device, AFAIK).

      But, all the same, it's not some life-changing thing. I have computer monitor. I have a TV. My life will not be amazingly improved just because I can watch movies or TV on something the size my living room wall without going to a theater. There was an announcement about five years ago presaging a new form of computer memory to replace all our harddrives. It would be non-volatile, solid state and dense enough to fit a terabyte in something the size of a credit. *That* would get me excited.

      --
      Canthros
    5. Re:What a perfect use of new technology. by Wrexen · · Score: 1

      Mod parent up!

    6. Re:What a perfect use of new technology. by lachlan76 · · Score: 1

      It depends...I still prefer CRT screens, and AFAIK, artists do as well.

    7. Re:What a perfect use of new technology. by Tony+Hoyle · · Score: 1

      LCDs give my wife migranes, so we had to go back to CRT.

      The doctor said it only affected women and has something to do with the number of colours an LCD renders being too high... sounds hokey to me (he's a doctor not an engineer!) but switching back to CRT helped her.

    8. Re:What a perfect use of new technology. by lachlan76 · · Score: 1

      Yhe reason I like them is that I can use resolutions other than 640x480 and 1024x768 or whatever the monitor uses.

  15. I wonder.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    if my girlfriend would wear the diamond dust flat screen on her finger when I propose. It can display the diamond ring that I will eventually get for her after I invent the next nanotechnology breakthrough, using common household dust to make dirt cheap displays.

  16. Cheap Diamonds by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    1. Make synthetic diamonds. This technology has been around since the 1950s and people seem to be getting closer to making it relatively cheap.

    2. Drag a white dwarf into orbit and mine it. On second thought, that might be *more* expensive. Oh, well.

    1. Re:Cheap Diamonds by DJ+Rubbie · · Score: 3, Funny
      Drag a white dwarf into orbit and mine it.

      If one such white dwarf is made to orbit Earth, it would be Earth orbiting around it instead of the other way around. Depending on the orbital distance, the orbital period can be extremely fast, could be much faster than twenty-four hours, Earth's rotational period will be locked into this orbital period, resulting that the length of a day will change (it will probably be short). The side that face this white-dwarf will be bathed in radiation. Not to mention the sun and this white-dwarf will also share a center of rotation somewhere in the middle of each other, will definitely throw Mecury and Venus into unpredictable orbits, Mars will also have its orbit messed up, the asteriod belt will destablize, Jupiter and the rest of the planets may also be slightly affected by this new gravitational source. Who knows what will happen to the moon.

      On second thought, that might be *more* expensive.

      Oh whew, economics surely put a stop to this crazy plan to destroy the solar system for some giant diamond. Also, such a diamond would surely be expensive, and such an influx of wealth can surely destroy the global economy anyway.

      --
      Please direct all bug reports to /dev/null
  17. Insensitive clod! by Apro+im · · Score: 1

    I know what you mean, but maybe you should have linked an image that actually showed the test or context - after all, Shiva's a name of a Hindu god.

  18. In other news... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Platinum makes great toothbrush handles.

    Also, have you considered bathing in Bollinger? It'll change everything.

    1. Re:In other news... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why would I go to Missouri just to bath?

  19. Diamond dust? Sure. But what can they do with ... by burgburgburg · · Score: 1
    Diamond Dogs?

    Riddle me that, Ziggy.

  20. Re:Use Synthetics! - It's all marketing by Graemee · · Score: 1

    De Beers has controlled the majority of the diamond trade to the point that people believe they are the rarest of stones. They're not.

    http://www.rotten.com/library/crime/corporate/de be ers/

  21. SCREECH?! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Am I the only one that read "Nanothech Brigns Cheap Flat TVs From Dustin Diamond"?

    1. Re:SCREECH?! by KillerDeathRobot · · Score: 1

      You didn't know? He and Zach played this great trick on Principle Belding and now Screech is a nano scientist.

      --
      Thinkin' Lincoln - a web comic of presidential proportions
  22. field emitters been in development for a long time by hqm · · Score: 1

    I remember seeing a lecture on field emitter display technology in a class at MIT in 1980. That's 25 years ago. Sure has been a slow technology to mature...

  23. Grandpa by ValuJet · · Score: 4, Funny

    Make a tv out of Grandpa

  24. Nanothech? by Phrogman · · Score: 1

    I know a company named NanoTech but who is this NanoThech referred to in the title?

    --
    "The first time I got drunk, I got married. The second time I bought a chimpanzee, after that I stayed sober" Arian Seid
  25. Re:Title's wrong by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Naaa, neutron_p just speaks with a lisp.

  26. Diamonds aren't rare by Schezar · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Diamonds aren't rare. In fact, there are more jewel-grade diamonds of large size and high quality than there are people.

    The diamond industry works entirely off of the perception in most people that diamonds are rare. They strictly limit the supply, and spend more money advertising than they do mining.

    If you don't believe me, take a piece of diamond jewelry to several jewelers and have it appraised. They'll all quote a fairly large sum. Now try to sell it to them. They'll offer you maybe 5-10% of what they quoted.

    If you shop around, you'll find that you can't actually sell a diamond for anywhere near what it's "worth."

    That said, synthetic diamonds scare the living hell out of the diamond industry, since they're cheap to manufacture and indistinguishable physically from a "real" diamond (which itself isn't rare, but I digress).

    These displays will drive more research and capital into the diamond manufacturing market, which will drive diamond prices down.

    --
    GeekNights!
    Late Night Radio for Geeks!
    1. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by infinite9 · · Score: 3, Interesting

      The diamond industry works entirely off of the perception in most people that diamonds are rare.

      I heard a story about how Russia had been stockpiling large quantities of high grade (natural) diamonds from their own mines. They went to DeBeers and invited them to buy their stock to prevent Russia from dumping them on the diamond market. DeBeers happily bought their entire stock at a excellent (for russia) price. How's that for limiting supply? :-)

      --
      Disconnect your television. Do your own research. Draw your own conclusions. They're probably lying. Don't be a sheep.
    2. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by amembleton · · Score: 2, Informative

      According to this article, Russia did flood the market with low quality diamonds. DeBeers reacted by concentrating on high quality diamonds which went up in value rather than down as the low quality ones did.

    3. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by drinkypoo · · Score: 3, Interesting

      There is a book on this subject called "the rise and fall of diamonds" and it tells the story of who is behind the social constrction of the diamond mythology, why they were interested which was not purely monetary, when they got started, what they did, and how they pulled it off. When I found it listed on Amazon, it was listed as "RISE FALL DIAMONDS". I got it for about $12 and so far it's been fascinating.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    4. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by rjelks · · Score: 2, Funny

      I find this funny...and kind of sad.

      I've had 3-4 places talk up the "high quality" Russian diamonds. I'm sure I'm getting royally ripped off, but I have little choice.

      Does anyone think she might go for an "engagement plasma TV" now?

    5. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by brentl · · Score: 1

      indistinguishable physically from a "real" diamond

      Under normal light they're indistinguishable, but under UV light they have a yellow colour where a naturally made diamond will have a clear colour. I don't think that diamond industry is really scared of synthetic diamonds since, like you said, the main reason people like diamonds is the percieved rariety.

    6. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually, there are synthetic diamonds which are indistinguishable from regular diamonds unless you use x-ray chromatography. I read about them a while back but can't seem to find the link anymore. Anyway, this would disturb the diamond industry because they have a monopoly.

    7. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      X-ray chromatography doesn't exist. Guess you mean x-ray diffraction.

    8. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by pz · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I've been saying for about 10 years that the jewlery diamond industry is doomed. Here's the reasoning.

      1. Silicon ingots used by chip foundries are the purest substance available to man in production quantities, at 7 nines (99.99999% pure).

      2. The semiconductor industry doesn't think twice about investing billions -- BILLIONS -- of dollars in manufacturing and R&D.

      3. Diamond is a very interesting base out of which to build semiconductors: it has (from memory) a large band-gap, excellent thermal characteristics, and some blindingly fast transistors have been made in the lab out of it.

      Once the semiconductor folks decide that they want to do large-scale diamond manufacturing, there's a huge impetus to generate higher quality diamond than has ever been mined, in quantities that will make the collection of mined dimonds seem a drop in the bucket. The only hope DeBeers has at that point is to market based on the imperfections of natural stones, since perfection, their current stock-in-trade, will no longer be a selling point.

      --

      Put my fist through my alarm clock with its ding-dong death inside my ear. - The Blackjacks.
    9. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Moofie · · Score: 1

      Doesn't matter who you buy it from. If you buy a diamond, you're going to get rooked, assuming you're considering only the financial implications of diamond ownership.

      Me, I won't buy diamonds because I don't like the business practices of the miners. And my girl agrees with me.

      --
      Why yes, I AM a rocket scientist!
    10. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by aluminum+boy · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Actually, it is the flaws (to a degree) that make a diamond valuable. For instance, colored diamonds (e.g. pink) contain a flaw that give them color. A trained jewler can quickly tell the diffrence between "perfect" industrial diamonds and "flawed" ones. Really, the most valuable natural diamonds are the most perfect imperfect ones.

    11. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      the semiconducotr industry is in the buiness of inserting PRECISE amounts of impuritys into semiconducotors

      btw the reason silicon has remained so common is that its oxide has properties which allow it to be used as an extremely thin insulating layer (making the mosfet possible)

    12. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Thundersnatch · · Score: 1

      Manufactured emeralds are basically worthless, while natural emeralds are still reasonably valuable. Even though the synthetic emeralds are far more pure ion composition. For a variety of reasons, the market values natural emeralds far higher than manufactured ones. The same goes for cultured pearls.

      I bought a $6500 natural diamond last year, just a month before the Wired article came out. But I am not kicking myself. Gem-quality manufactured or "cultured" diamonds larger than 1 carat are still rare in the marketplace, and none of those available are clear, as far as I can tell.

      Also, I'm a firm believer that something is "worth" whatever you can sell it for. And you can't sell a manufactured diamond for anything close to the price of a natural diamond, given similar color, cut, clarity, and carat weight.

    13. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Long-EZ · · Score: 1

      The poster was probably thinking of X-ray crystallography, which is the same as X-ray diffraction.

      --
      >> My ultraviolent Linux switch video.
    14. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Wired.com has a 10page article about synthetic diamonds. Good read.

    15. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Frogbert · · Score: 1

      Can someone please tell me where they have these diamon manufacturing plants? Honestly I want to buy a synthetic diamond and have a ring made for my girlfriend. I will not purchase a diamond ring from a store that may have been mined in some slave pit and I want this rock to be big. Where can I buy them?

    16. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Behrooz · · Score: 1

      Also, I'm a firm believer that something is "worth" whatever you can sell it for. And you can't sell a manufactured diamond for anything close to the price of a natural diamond, given similar color, cut, clarity, and carat weight.

      Of course, you couldn't sell your natural diamond for $6500 either. Appraised, yes. Actually sold, probably not more than $1200.

      I suppose with a natural diamond you get the additional benefit of the blood money and terror that their production funds, but the value of human life is entirely subjective...

      --
      "We have to go forth and crush every world view that doesn't believe in tolerance and free speech." - David Brin
    17. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Planesdragon · · Score: 2, Funny

      Over the course of your courtship, please remember that somewhere between "what's your religion" and "are you open to or expecting S&M play?" that you should ask the "what's your opinion on diamonds" question.

      She may want a diamond, but only as a signal and she doesn't care what the cost is. She may want something other than a diamond. She may also want a diamond, but willing to take something else along with it.

      My suggestion, assuming that your "two month's salary" is the US per-capita range of $5000, is to spend no more than one-fifth that on the ring itself, and the remainder on a romantic getaway or other distinct and memorable gift.

      (I'll also note here that a reasonable and senible wedding, honeymoon, AND engagement gift can all be done for under $5,000.)

    18. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by gtkuhn · · Score: 2, Interesting

      According to the Wired article posted above, Gemesis is located in Florida and producing 3-carat diamonds.

      The other company, Apollo something, has found success in manufacture but doesn't seem to be in mass production yet.

      Interesting was that De Beers has given away free ultra high-tech detecting machines, invented by them, to labs around the world to detect the trace metal solvents that get stuck in the lattice of the Gemesis stones. Apparently the CVD process used by Apollo looks to be completely undetectable. And if "perfect" needs a few flaws, how hard can that be to introduce?

    19. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by mdielmann · · Score: 1

      While you're mostly right, there are a couple significant things different between silicon (especially pure silicon) and diamond. Silicon is an element, diamond is a form of an element. Soot can be pure carbon, too, but it doesn't share all the properties of diamond. That said, there was a Wired article posted on /. in the last year or two about a company that was making diamonds using vapour deposition. I doubt that will be more expensive than anything that has to be done with silicon (expecially once you include doping and insulating layers), but it is a different animal.

      --
      Sure I'm paranoid, but am I paranoid enough?
    20. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by mdielmann · · Score: 1

      The two most promising methods for making diamonds that I've heard of were listed in a Wired article posted on /. previously. One used a solution put under pressure to make (at the time) yellow diamonds, the other used carbon vapour deposition to make pure carbon diamonds (which are white). Both are distinguishable from natural diamonds, using spectrometry or some such. The yellow ones had certain metals in them that natural yellow diamonds didn't have. The white, vapour deposition, ones were distinguishable because they had no impurities. So you could take either one to a lab that could do the tests and find out if you had an artificial one or not. Now for the big questions. If you were looking for a big rock to hang on your finger, would you rather save the money and/or get a bigger rock, or be able to say that it was dug out of the ground instead? And if you're looking for purity, say for a semi-conducting material, would prefer the lab-grown one where you can do batch testing for purity, or the field-collected one, where you have to pretty much test each one and still not be guaranteed that there isn't a chemical change in one part or another of it? You can bet where the semiconductor industry will go with that one.

      --
      Sure I'm paranoid, but am I paranoid enough?
    21. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by pz · · Score: 1

      While you're mostly right, there are a couple significant things different between silicon (especially pure silicon) and diamond. Silicon is an element, diamond is a form of an element.

      Well, if you're going to be pedantic, you're mostly right. When you say "silicon" and "silicon ingot" in the context of the semiconductor industry, you mean "single crystal silicon" which is a form of silicon (and, in fact, you mean a certain crystallographic form of silicon, the exact name of which I forget, but may be face-centered cubic); silicon can easily be manufactured in large quantities in polycrystaline form (and is, indeed, used to make conductive traces on ICs, but is more commonly called "poly"), and glassy form (note, I'm not talking about silicon dioxide, but glassy pure silicon). When you say "diamond" in the context of the semiconductor industry, you mean "single crystal carbon in diamond form" (in, not unusually once you study it, the same crystallographic form as silicon crystal used for semiconductors).

      That said, the secondary element from my argument above is that the silicon ingots produced by wafer foundries are huge -- many feet long, and up to 400mm in diameter -- single crystals. Make single crystal carbon (to be pedantic) that big, in 7 nines purity, with the same crystal structure as natural diamond, dopable to arbitrary coloration, and DeBeers, as I was saying, it out of business. Think it's not cost effective? The semiconductor industry has billions of dollars to throw at it for R&D to make it so.

      --

      Put my fist through my alarm clock with its ding-dong death inside my ear. - The Blackjacks.
    22. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by rjelks · · Score: 1

      That would have possibly worked before I freaked out and asked her to go ring shopping with me. I'm afraid it's too late for the 1/5th idea.

    23. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by mdielmann · · Score: 1

      Well, first things first. I never said the semiconductor industry would find it too expensive, or even impractical. In fact, once enough research has been done to take care of the hard parts of using a new semiconductor substrate, I think it's inevitable. Diamond is a better material in many ways than silicon.

      Now, back to the differences. Here is a description of how silicon is made. It is essentially a 90-year old process for growing single crystals of metal, using a crystal the metal naturally grows into (given fairly normal temperatures and pressures). The big feat here is using an environment to promote purity, and the scale at which it is done. Here is an article that mentions how diamond crystals are grown. Note that this technology, while successfully making a diamond about 35 years ago, is still in its infancy for mono-crystalline diamonds (which is all that matters in this discussion), and that diamond is not the default state for carbon in a relatively normal environment. Note that CVD is nothing new for semiconductor fabrication, so the mere mention of it isn't a stumbling block for the industry. Also, the crystal diameter for diamond is around 160mm (in 2002) vs. 400mm (in 2004) for silicon, and thickness measured in centimeters for diamond vs. meters for silicon.

      Which brings me back to my original point. Silicon is relatively easy to work with, and all the hard parts about silicon (maintaining purity, crystal growth process, doping, polishing) are going to be just as hard when working with diamond, if not harder. Then there's the new challenges that diamond adds to the mix, some of which are still being researched.

      --
      Sure I'm paranoid, but am I paranoid enough?
    24. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      vapor dep diamonds currently cost more to make than pressure grown ones. It will likely be a while before we have diamond insulator semiconductors in broad production.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    25. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by drinkypoo · · Score: 1
      the diamond industry (read: DeBeers) is absolutely terrified of synthetic diamonds, always has been, always will be. More important than the total number of diamonds is the rate at which they are sold.

      DeBeers controls world diamond distribution through two methods. First, as they are the primary holders and distributors of diamonds, they just employ their influence (usu. w/ governments) to get people sut down. Second, they will tell diamond dealers that if they buy from ANYONE but them they will cut them off permanently. Finally, there is no market for used diamonds due in part to the social construction of diamonds, and in part because debeers has made threats to stop dealers from buying used diamonds.

      DeBeers is pure, concentrated evil. Avoid all diamonds they could possibly have been involved with. Unless you have a certificate saying the diamond came to you by other means, supporting diamonds is supporting slavery and monopolistic, anticompetitive practice on a global scale.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    26. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Diamonds are forever. Plasma's all I need to please me. TV stimulates and tease[s] me. It would leave in the night. I've no fear that it might desert me. I don't need love What good will love do me TV won't lie to me (well unless it's Fox News) For when love's gone HD luster on.

    27. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      I don't think that diamond industry is really scared of synthetic diamonds

      They got congress to stop GE from researching them.

    28. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Thundersnatch · · Score: 1

      First off, my diamond is from Canada. A very very small portion of diamonds on the market are "conflict diamonds."

      Secondly, I can almost certainly sell my diamond for a large portion of what it is worth. Perhaps not to a diamond dealer, who has access to wholesale diamonds. But it can be sold in the secondary market for something close to what I paid for it. That referenced stone on eBay is similar to the one I bought, but smaller.

      Finally, the oil you pump into your car has cost more lives than any amount of diamonds. Do you feel guilty every time you drive? Or every time you use a petroleum-derived product like plastic? Get off your high horse.

    29. Re:Diamonds aren't rare by Thundersnatch · · Score: 1

      Presumably one would use an escrow agency to hold the funds until the purchaser verifies that the diamond is okay. This is done for many high-value purchases on eBay.

  27. Best line ever by Phrogman · · Score: 2, Insightful

    One of the cleverest plays on words I ever heard was in regards to DeBeers during the Apartheid years in SA:

    "You bring DeBeers, and lets have Apartheid!"

    Wish I could remember who originated it...

    --
    "The first time I got drunk, I got married. The second time I bought a chimpanzee, after that I stayed sober" Arian Seid
  28. Read the fine print by lateralus_1024 · · Score: 1

    Be weary of the Apex "Angel Dust" knock offs that will surely hit the Walmart shelves by next holiday season.

    --
    If you think /. comments are bad, check out Digg.
  29. I giggle like schoolgirl when I hear diamond dust by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Or titmouse. It goes back to a Cheech and Chong movie. I forget which because of the weed. But in the totally-reenginnered PC TV version, they changed all the coke or pot references to 'diamond dust.' There's plenty of staccato scenes with huge chunks missing and lots of quotes like 'Yo, pass the DIAMOND DUST.' 'This is some excellent DIAMOND DUST!' 'Let's snort up some of this DIAMOND DUST.' And diamond dust is voiced in a totally different monotone white guy's voice. I will never feel the same about DIAMOND DUST ever again.

  30. In other breaking news! by CreatureComfort · · Score: 2, Funny


    CreatureComfort writes "Aerotech scientists are going to develop new flying cars made from chicken feathers. It opens up the possibility of cheaper and more power efficient public transportation, for use in wide area commuting and many other applications. Toyota recently announced plans to launch a vehicle based on a new flat-panel driving technology called SED (Surface-conduction Electron-emitter Drive) in 2005. Ford and others have been working for several years on another technology called FED (Field Emission Drive) but that too has yet to reach commercialization."

    *Yawn**Cough**Cough**Cough* I think I'm allergic to all this vapor.

    --
    "Unheard of means only it's undreamed of yet,
    Impossible means not yet done." ~~ Julia Ecklar
    1. Re:In other breaking news! by hobbesx · · Score: 2, Insightful
      I think I'm allergic to all this vapor


      Note to self: Check sig before posting smart-ass comments in the future.

      --

      Pet peeve: Responses to sig with no responses to post. Morons.


      DAMN!

      --
      This rating is Unfair ( ) ( ) Fair (*) Funny
      Sigh... If only. Modding would be so much more fun.
    2. Re:In other breaking news! by CreatureComfort · · Score: 1


      Actually that's exactly my point. Don't brag about what you are going to do. Until it's done, it's just dreams and desperate begging for venture capital.

      I like your sig for that post BTW. ;-)

      --
      "Unheard of means only it's undreamed of yet,
      Impossible means not yet done." ~~ Julia Ecklar
  31. RTFA by marcus · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If you had RTFA, you'd know that no one here knows more than you do know. ;-) The linked piece was nothing but fluff, no substance at all. Here's a summary:

    "Nanotech is great. Diamonds are great. Venture capitalists are great. Flat screens are great. We are going to be rich!

    1) Nanotech
    2) Diamond dust
    3) Flat screens
    4) Profit!"

    What's missing is something worth reading.

    --
    Good judgement comes from experience, and experience comes from bad judgement.
    - W. Wriston, former Citibank CEO
    1. Re:RTFA by RealProgrammer · · Score: 1

      That's very insightful.

      The only wildcard is if these blokes in Britain have figured out how to make a gozillion* itty-bitty diamonds all grow exactly the same. My guess is they haven't, but they'll take the venture money to prove you can't.

      * For those of you in Great Britain, a gozillion is a thousand gajillion :-)

      --
      sigs, as if you care.
  32. New Definition of "Nanotech" by Baldrson · · Score: 4, Interesting
    Since we have now redefined nanotech to include anything that deals in nanometer scale structures, rather than artificially constructed mechanisms with molecules as components, how far back in time can we claim "nanotech" to have been practiced? The first crystal growth? Perhaps to the first time a crystal was cleaved along certain atomic planes?

    Perhaps we could do something similar with "space settlement" and just sort of forget that 1973 was the year that western civilization turned away from its destiny in space and began threatning the planet with globalist growth.

    That should make everyone feel better too.

    1. Re:New Definition of "Nanotech" by Timothy+Brownawell · · Score: 1
      Since we have now redefined nanotech to include anything that deals in nanometer scale structures, rather than artificially constructed mechanisms with molecules as components[...]
      Umm... I'm pretty sure that's *always* been the real-world definition of nanotech. The "molecules as components" definition would be science fiction only.

      Tim

    2. Re:New Definition of "Nanotech" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And what the hell is a "nanotech scientist?" More meaningless terms with the goddamn "nano" prefix. What's the difference between "materials" and "nanomaterials"? What a load of crap.

      If there is somone working on nanosystems, with sub-microscopic components, not just homogeneous films or particles, or compounds, then that sounds more like "nanotech" versus "science" hoping to get more attention/money.

    3. Re:New Definition of "Nanotech" by Thavius · · Score: 1

      No no, it's "Since the marketing drones have redefined nanotech to include anything that deals in nanometer scale structures, news stories have sounded more important, and venture capital has been pouring in!"

    4. Re:New Definition of "Nanotech" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >>> Since we have now redefined nanotech to include anything that deals in nanometer scale structures... how far back in time can we claim "nanotech" to have been practiced?

      Prehistory to ~1750: Alchemy...
      ~1750 to 1990: Chemistry...
      1990+ nano(money)tech(grubbing)nology(hackery)

    5. Re:New Definition of "Nanotech" by Goldsmith · · Score: 2, Interesting

      This is something I hear a lot from people outside of science. Who get's to decide what to name a scientific discipline? Scientests?

      Nanotechnology in science was never just really small robotics. I do put the start of nanotechnology a long time ago, specifically with the invention of nanoscale titanium dioxide, that stuff which makes paint brighter and sunscreen better. Five or ten years ago, the big push in nanotechnology was finding out what we could already make which would be that small and still interesting. (A great example is carbon nanotubes. They were probably made by Edison, and they were probably seen as early as the 1970's but no paid them any attention until 1991.) Along the way, we've found some things which may be usefull right now, this is why there are so many simple nanotechnology products coming out right now, such as pants and sunscreen.

      And before you ask, yes I've read and own Feynman's talk and Drexler's books. Many of the tools they predicted are around today. It turns out they've been done in other ways than they thought they would be. What do you think was important to them, the process or the result? What is important to space settlement, that people get there on a chemical rocket, or that they get there at all?

      There are a lot more problems with working with molecules than early theorists thought. For example, I work with nanoscale electronics. I can make a transistor one molecule wide, but it costs about $10,000 by the time you factor everything in, and you only get one. Is that really going to be commercially worthwhile right now? It's worth much more to me to use that as a tool to do something unusual.

      There are other, more important things we need to do than try to sell the public our lab tools to justify calling our work nanotechnology. Now that the initial excitement over working with molecules is over, people are looking for things to do which were not possible before. It's silly to argue about the method by which we reach our goals, and what to name those methods, when we all share those same goals.

    6. Re:New Definition of "Nanotech" by Minna+Kirai · · Score: 1

      Since we have now redefined nanotech

      There was no redefinition.

      anything that deals in nanometer scale structures

      "Nano tech" is "nanoscale technology", so yes, that's exactly what it means.

      rather than artificially constructed mechanisms with molecules as components

      If you want to talk about nanomachinery, you're free to use that specific word.

      What _I_ want to know is how all those slimey doctors redefined "cloning" to mean induced monozygotic reproduction, instead of building a full copy of an adult organism, which is what it's always meant in scifi...

  33. Well, one lucky thing for Mitsubishi... by PornMaster · · Score: 1

    They already have the trademark DiamondTron. :)

    1. Re:Well, one lucky thing for Mitsubishi... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Nothing to do with the fact that Mitsubishi means 'three diamonds' in japanese then?
      (the logo is three diamonds as well)

    2. Re:Well, one lucky thing for Mitsubishi... by PornMaster · · Score: 1

      Understood, but it's still a bonus to have that trademarked before diamond-dust TVs are on the market.

  34. Cheap, huh? Reminds me of an SNL quip... by ecklesweb · · Score: 3, Funny
    I believe it was Jimmie Falon - at a time when natural gas had spiked in price and alternative fuels were all the rage:
    Hey! I've got an idea? How 'bout we make a car that runs on macadamia nuts and bald eagle heads!
  35. You'll find something to argue about by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You'll want 16:9 while she'll argue for an emerald or marquis cut display.

  36. The operative words by Nom+du+Keyboard · · Score: 1
    Nanotech scientists are going to develop

    ...going to develop...those are the operative words.

    My operative words are: It doesn't exist now. It may never exist. If it does exist someday it may not be cheap, or good, or available in quantity.

    Nothing to get excited about yet.

    --
    "It's the height of ridiculousness to say for those 9 lines you get hundreds of millions."
  37. size ;-) by Scrameustache · · Score: 2, Funny

    women [..] agree [...] a bigger one is a good idea.

    That... isn't new.

    --

    You can't take the sky from me...

  38. Re:Cheap Diamonds - locked why? by Nom+du+Keyboard · · Score: 1
    Earth's rotational period will be locked into this orbital period

    Just what causes this rotational lock? I mean I realize the Moon is locked to its rotation around the Earth, yet the Earth is not locked the Sun, which it clearly orbits and has done so for quite a while.

    --
    "It's the height of ridiculousness to say for those 9 lines you get hundreds of millions."
  39. Re:cheap?; how about cell phones, though by captainthomassmith · · Score: 1

    It'll be the solution that will address batteries which only last two or three hours of talk time. Or so we might be led to believe... I'll belive it when I see it!

  40. Ob Family Guy Quote by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Diamonds.

    She'll pretty much have to.

  41. Re:Cheap, huh? Reminds me of an SNL quip... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Macadamia nuts are cheap too.. the trouble is getting them out of their shells without crushing them. Most of the nuts get broken in the de-shelling machine, and as a result, macadamia nut chunks for use in baking sell for a lot less than the same mass of whole nuts. There's a small fortune waiting for someone who commercializes an industrial-scale nutcracker that really works on macadamias.

  42. Ob: Family Guy Quote by Dufftron+9000 · · Score: 0, Redundant

    Diamonds, she'll pretty much have to.

  43. Diamond dust? That's so 1990... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    I'm building one out of Legos to sit next to my grandfather clock and 3-D chocolate printer.

  44. TV: Like radio, with pictures. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Who'd a thunk it?

    Nanotech is certainly one of the most promising ideas being thrown around today. If only they'll find a way to make it cheaper!

    Imagine being able to write on a whiteboard, and then "save" it to disk. The pens would never run out of ink, you could scroll stuff out of the way when you don't need it anymore... Just in producing a completely "dry" whiteboard, which is actually a write-on computer display like those tablet PCs, I can see a tremendous use for a "cheap flat TV." This would help university students tremendously. I find that students often spend so much time writing notes that they don't allow the information to "sink in" properly. The other problem with notes is that they are static. Imagine if they could just sit in class and absorb everything, then receive what was written on the board by email. To make this even more useful, the whiteboard would be saved as a video, instead of as a static image, so that they could see in what order things were written. For math and the like, this would be especially innovative.

    I can't wait until nanotech, display technology, and flexible circuits reach such high production and low cost volumes that all the books will be "printed" with pages made of them.

    Imagine opening a book and being able to animate the illustrations therein... But what am I talking about? That's at least 50 years off. :-) "Like radio with pictures..."

  45. Re:Cheap Diamonds - locked why? by Moofie · · Score: 1

    Think of it this way. The heaviest half of the moon points toward Earth. The same phenomenon doesn't happen with the Sun, because the Sun is primarily a fluid.

    --
    Why yes, I AM a rocket scientist!
  46. Re:Cheap Diamonds - locked why? by Timothy+Brownawell · · Score: 1
    Just what causes this rotational lock? I mean I realize the Moon is locked to its rotation around the Earth, yet the Earth is not locked the Sun, which it clearly orbits and has done so for quite a while.
    Tidal forces do that. Basically, the earth would be stretched into an oblong shape, with the long axis pointing at the dwarf. If the earth then tried to spin faster than the orbital period, the crust would have to bend as the oblong part "moved" WRT the rest of the earth.

    If the earth was trying to sping enough faster (or slower; it's all relative) than the orbital period, then things on the ground would move over this "hump" very quickly, and might be thrown into the air, much like a car going too fast over a hill. If this happened on the hump pointing towards the dwarf (there'd also be one pointing away from it), then any people who got "launched" in this manner would stand a decent chance of being captured by the gravity of the dwarf, and landing on it. They would then become the richest people in the solar system, unless someone else had claimed the dwarf first.

    Tim

  47. Re:Cheap Diamonds - locked why? by h4x0r-3l337 · · Score: 1

    The moon is smaller and therefore is easier/faster to stop. Give the earth enough time and it too will be locked with one side facing the sun.

  48. You're missing the REAL article, pal! by Spy+der+Mann · · Score: 1

    I read the diamond dust article at NanoInvestor News, and frankly it still seems mid to long term.

    If you want a WORKING flat display, check this out this experimental flat display (picture) using carbon nanotubes as the electron emission source. I just glimpsed over it, but I think this was done by Motorola. At least, the dates fit (2003).

    Recently, Samsung's Korean research achieved the same goal, and apparently they're ready for mass production. I told this in an earlier post elsewhere. They plan to distribute their nanodisplays around 2006.
    Here's a PDF about Samsung's nanotech displays.

    (Unfortunately for me, on the very same day, some guy posted a story about a _DIFFERENT_ kind of "ultra-flat" displays, also by Samsung, that would be available in 2005. I guess the mods confused the articles - bad luck, heh).

    Anyway, the diamond dust tech seems too young for now. Samsung's nanotube displays already exist (at least experimentally).

  49. The health effects of nanotech dust? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    The original statement about nanotech and dust just got me thinking about something that I hadn't considered before. Namely, has anyone ever studied the dust which results from objects created by nanotech? The reason why I'm wondering about this is due to two recent reports from the past year. The first mentioned that nanotech particles could accumulate within the brain. Sort of like a poisoning effect. The second report was about dust from computer devices made with a flame retardant; the result of which was that the chemical associated with the retardant accumulated in the body as well.

    I'm wondering if we'll see a similar report about nanotech dust. Yeesh.

    Does anyone know if any research has actually looked at this? Or has this thought been completely missed?

    1. Re:The health effects of nanotech dust? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      In the future, humans will have fireproof brains?

      but to be serious, it "could" be a danger for the future, it all sounds like sci fi at the moment, but what about more than just "dust"? if we start having serious amounts of common nanotech we could end up with billions random mechanisms just lying around or floating in the air accumulating in brains or organs or critical systems etc. Guess it's the same as anything else, the potential for mayhem is always there.

    2. Re:The health effects of nanotech dust? by argent · · Score: 1

      You are Neal Stephenson, and I claim my Young Lady's Illustrated Primer.

  50. steps to make a cheaper TV by geekoid · · Score: 1

    1) Grind up 20 pounds of diamonds ...errr profit?

    Yes, I know thats not how it works.
    Yes, I know it is not as funny as I think.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  51. Man, you were looking hard by geekoid · · Score: 1

    to find some post so you could say that.

    It has nothing to do with the post you replied to.
    Real diamonds ARE more expensice. The reason they are more expensive has nothing to do with his point.

    Also, demand drives price, not rarity.
    I could have a one of a kind gem, but if nobody wanted it, it would be worthless.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    1. Re:Man, you were looking hard by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      Also, demand drives price, not rarity.
      I could have a one of a kind gem, but if nobody wanted it, it would be worthless.


      You can have all the demand in the world, but with a limitless supply your gem is still worthless.
      Demand and supply both interactively drive price.

    2. Re:Man, you were looking hard by Graemee · · Score: 1

      Control the supply......and you can control the price.

  52. Hey by geekoid · · Score: 2, Funny

    Igors post on slashdot, cool.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    1. Re:Hey by Tony+Hoyle · · Score: 1

      Yeth Mathter

  53. Price may not be that bad.... by shadowsurfr1 · · Score: 1

    There's plenty of Diamond Dust that comes off of diamonds used to make jewelry. They gotta inspect the diamond then cut it to its shape. There's gotta be some useable dust there.

    1. Re:Price may not be that bad.... by dbIII · · Score: 1
      There's plenty of Diamond Dust that comes off of diamonds used to make jewelry
      There's also plenty more that comes out of the ground at the right size. Currently it is used as an abrasive. You can also use the simple DuPont process to make artificial diamond dust - i.e. wrap graphite in explosives and detonate.
  54. Having your cake and eating it too by DumbSwede · · Score: 0, Redundant
    Remember Honey how you said you wanted lots and lots of diamonds? Here there are in this awesome giant flat screen TV!

  55. Here's the original press release... by argent · · Score: 4, Informative

    Once again, the physorg honeypot grabs slashdot eyeballs. Physorg takes press releases and puts them up, with bad formatting, on ugly web pages... with no links to the original source.

    So here's some missing links: the press release at Bristol, the diamond group at bristol and the home page of Advance Nanotech.

    As you can see, that's a chemical vapor deposition group, so there's no need to grind up diamond dust from real diamonds. :) It's also, um, not exactly what I'd call "nanotech"... unless you consider any product involving structures at the molecular scale (like, oh, wood, or portland cement) to be "nanotech".

  56. The article. by satanami69 · · Score: 2, Informative
    --
    I really hate Dan Patrick.
    1. Re:The article. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Those are *not* CVD diamonds. That's standard HPHT diamonds!

  57. Dvorak typists unite by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Only a dvorak typist would turn "Nanotech" into "Nanothech". Go Taco!

  58. Another use for diamond dust by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Sprinkle some on your enemy's windshield wipers. Next time he turns them on - instant scratches!

  59. Cost is almost irrelevant in display technologies by Ogemaniac · · Score: 1

    You are talking about layers that are sub-micron in thickness, often less than 100 nanometers. A one micron thick layer on a meter-square screen is 10-6 m^3, or a cm^3. Therefore, you would need 1-2g of whatever substance you are talking about. Even the most exotic research-grade chemicals rarely cost more than $100/g, or $100 to $200 per screen. In reality, the cost would be much less for anything a production scale - $10/g at most, or $10-20 per screen. The raw material cost is dwarfed by the processing cost. On another point, does anyone know how nano-diamond is synthesized and in what quantity it can currently be done? I didn't find the answer with a quick web search, though I didn't look in the literature at all. The other half of my research group is now synthesizing nano-sapphire (alpha alumina). Pretty interesting stuff, actually, especially if you ever see the machine in operation. They call it "Smaug" for a reason.

  60. No burn-in? by Timbotronic · · Score: 1

    That PDF article's pretty good, but I think they've got it wrong about burn-in problems with CRTs and the FE displays. Burn-in has always been a problem with CRTs. Just look at any old ATM or information kiosk. Phosphor coatings have well known burn-in issues. Surely FE displays, with effectively the same technology at the glass side would have the same problems.

    --

    One of these days I'm moving to Theory - everything works there

  61. Re:Cheap, huh? Reminds me of an SNL quip... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Looks like the problem has been solved:
    http://www.macadamia-nut.com/pages/englis h/process ing.htm

  62. Uh... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Apparently you don't realize that when perfectly made commerrcial diamonds are commonplace, then natural diamonds with all their imperfections will become worth much more as a result, because of their natural imperfectness.

    And then eventually...

    someone will start making paste "natural" diamonds.

  63. bandgaps vs field emission. by Ungrounded+Lightning · · Score: 1

    Once the electron is excited to the higher state equalling the difference between the bandgap (5.5 eV) and the NEA value (which is 2.4 eV on hydrogen saturated surfaces) , the electron just flies out of the material instead of becoming delocalized into the crystal.

    I'd have thought it would be "An electron in the 5.5v conduction band would be ejected from the crystal with a momentum equaling the difference between the conduction band and electron affinity voltages."

    Very sweet if that's the mechanism.

    Given that they mentioned "field emission", though, there might be a simpler mechanism.

    Field emission is essentially the same thing in a vacuum as a corona discharge is in a gas. If you have a pointed electrode near a broader conducting surface (like a plate or a ring) with a voltage between them, the electric field strength (volts per unit length) is extremely high near the tip of the pointy electrode and falls off as you approach the broad one.

    In a gas, the field is enough to ionize the gas near the point but not enough to maintain an arc over to the broad electrode. So there is an ionization current in the form of a "brush discharge" near the point. But as the ions traveling away from the point get beyond the surface where the electric field can maintain the arc, the individual ions dissociate and begin traveling through the gas independently.

    Similarly, in a field-emission device the concentration of the field near the point leads to a field strong enough to lift electrons off the point.

    In both cases the sharper the point, the stronger the field.

    Field emission cathodes have been around for decades. Big downside for a vacuum tube (including a flat-panel display) is that the traces of gas in the chamber become ionized and the positive ion (which is massive) is accellerated toward the cathode and tends to strike on or near the point with considerable energy. This ablates the point, degrading and eventually destroying the cathode.

    Diamond dust makes very sharp points, which would make it emit well. It is also very hard and conducts heat well, which might make it survive a lot of ion bombardment.

    Polycrystaline diamond coatings (which have LOTS of nanoscopic points) can be easily depositied on many surfaces using a device that is essentially a microwave oven filled with low-pressure methane. The microwaves dissociate the methane at the surface, lifting off the hydrogen and leaving elemental carbon behind. The carbon deposits as a mix of diamonds and graphite. Then the microwaves are absorbed by the graphite, vaporizing it and combining it with the hydrogen lifted off it earlier. The diamond stays behind, and gradually grows by absorbing the carbon from other methane molecules.

    --
    Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
  64. oh that goofball by gnass · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    This post made me think of Dustin Diamond, famous for his roles Screech on Saved by the Bell, Screech on Saved by the Bell: The College Years, and Screech on Saved by the Bell: The New Class. Oh, what a career. OK, now you can get back to what you were discussing, which is a yawn compared to the pal of Zack Morris and A.C. Slater.

    1. Re:oh that goofball by objekt · · Score: 1
      --
      -- Boycott Shell
  65. Dont believe TV propaganda by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If only a few people, who think the same, and have the same agenda control the mainstream media, and they do, than how would you know the truth? You wouldn't.

    http://www.natvan.com/who-rules-america/
    http://www.vanguardnewsnetwork.com/lettersOct-Nov0 3/12604btlracism.htm

  66. Aluminium by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Aluminium was once a precious metal (more expensive than gold) (read more at http://www.world-aluminium.org/history/antiquity.h tml ).
    And now it is cheap.
    Perhaps the diamond (carbon) will be same(cheap) in the future, like aluminium is now cheap.

    Paul

  67. What a perfect use of new technology... by aleander · · Score: 1

    ...getting warez to my home computer with terabyte density...

    --
    Segmentation fault. Ore dumped.
    1. Re:What a perfect use of new technology... by Canthros · · Score: 1

      Indeed! Lacking broadband, I have little recourse save sneakernet.

      --
      Canthros
  68. Re:Cheap Diamonds - locked why? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Um, yeah. Blah blah blah - whatever. Do you really think that I care about the earth eventually stopping its rotation? That'll happen in about a zillion years. What's the point of even saying that?

  69. Re:Cheap by sail4evr · · Score: 1

    Cheaper production process just means the manufacturers will be able to increase their bottom line. There is no reason these companies will pass more than a minimal savings on to consumers. Their pricing will be as high as possible but still allow them to generate market share. When their share of the market becomes greater than they can fullfill, their prices will increase. Supply and demand!

  70. Yes, It does! by LifesABeach · · Score: 1

    But telling people where would only gross them out.

  71. Talk About Free Advertising! by LifesABeach · · Score: 1

    What Would Really Be Funny If...

    Mitsubishi funded the project!

  72. Re:Cheap, huh? Reminds me of an SNL quip... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Alternate fuels in the newspaper. Well, the comics pages at least...

  73. Re:Cheap Diamonds - locked why? by Nom+du+Keyboard · · Score: 1
    The heaviest half of the moon...

    So some halves are more equal than other halves.

    --
    "It's the height of ridiculousness to say for those 9 lines you get hundreds of millions."