Asteroid Impacts Make Tiny Diamonds

The Bad Astronomer writes: It's long been thought that asteroid impacts create pressures high enough to form diamonds. Now, using high-energy lasers and X-ray crystallography, researchers have confirmed that lonsdaleite, a form of diamond, can be made this way.

Comments

Re:Which is correct? Mindat or TFA?

[Anonymous Coward]

I guess that you don't hang out at the National Labs much, since for well over a decade, really really pure Diamonds have been made, and studied.
Lattice Defects are no longer interesting, since their effects are macroscopic, crude, and irreproducible.
Isotopically Pure Diamonds are the Thing these days. At Isotopic purity ratios better than a billion to one, 12C and 13C Diamonds are starkly different in their properties.
It's a Quantum Physics thing, since 12C and 13C obey entirely different, and as yet irreconcilable, Laws of Physics.

However, I did enjoy the "Gee Whiz!" attitude of the Article; it's quite a refreshing change from the Paywalled and Malware-ridden Forbes articles of the recent past.

Good job, Timothy.