What is the quality of the Diamond Hybrid®?

The Diamond Hybrid is guaranteed to be D to F in color, VVS1 to VS2 in clarity, and rate a 1 to 2 on the AGS cutting scale, otherwise described as an “excellent” to “very good” cut. Only 1 in 1,000 earth-mined diamond will ever achieve the same cut grade as every Diamond Hybrid. The index of refraction of an earth-mined diamond is 2.42 and the fire light dispersion is 0.044. The Diamond Hybrid has an outer layer of infused diamond, thus its index of refraction of 2.24 and fire light dispersion of 0.041 is nearly identical to that of a natural diamond. This gives the Diamond Hybrid stone optical properties closer to an earth-mined diamond than any other simulant produced today.

These are among the best grades you can get – earth-mined diamonds of this cut, color and clarity could cost upwards of $10,000 USD per carat.

Color: Color describes the amount of color the diamond contains - this can range from colorless to yellow with slight tints of yellow, gray or brown. Colors can also range from intense yellow to brown, blue, green, pink and red. It is very rare and extremely expensive to find colorless earth-mined diamonds. The Diamond Hybrid perfectly mimics the diamond's crystal structure resulting in the virtually identical look of fine diamond. 

Clarity: Clarity describes the clearness or purity of a diamond. Clarity is determined by the number, size, nature and location of the internal inclusions and external blemishes of a stone. An earth-mined diamond nearly always has a birthmark as does the Diamond Hybrid. Within the diamond layer, we intentionally create "feathers" which gives the hybrid stone a more natural appearance. These feathers cannot be seen with the naked eye.

Cut: We spend a lot of time and effort on our cut. The Diamond Hybrid is hand-cut to precision and grades better on the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) diamond grading scale than most diamonds. This level of cutting perfection is only achieved once in every 1,000 earth-mined diamond. For example, it takes our cutters 8 times as long to cut a Diamond Hearts and Arrow cut as it does to cut a typical round natural diamond. While color and clarity are big factors in the cost of a diamond, it is the cut that breathes life, beauty, and dazzling brilliance into a diamond.

Hardness and Durability: When infused with the crystal core, the outer layer of lab-created diamond gives the Diamond Hybrid an overall hardness of 8.8 on the Mohs scale of mineral hardness. This outer layer of diamond, prior to infusion, measures approximately 9.6, while a pure carbon diamond measures 10. 

The Diamond Hybrid has a similar hardness to rubies or sapphires, is harder than an emerald and nearly three times as hard as a cubic zirconia. However, it is not as hard as a pure carbon diamond, so we suggest it be treated like a ruby or sapphire. 

The cubic zirconia offered by our competitors, regardless of their claims, has a hardness of 8.5. The Mohs scale is ordinal, meaning the actual hardness increases exponentially. In the end, the Diamond Hybrid, when compared to cubic zirconia, is nearly three times harder and more durable.