Science & Inventions
Laser pulses help to slice lab-grown diamond
Chiba University in Japan reported on November 2, 2026, how short laser pulses split a lab-grown diamond along a useful plane.
On November 2, 2026, Chiba University in Japan reported on a new way to slice diamonds that are grown in a laboratory. A team led by Professor Hirofumi Hidai used very short pulses of laser light to split a small, square diamond neatly into two pieces. The study was first posted online by the journal Diamond and Related Materials on September 21 and appeared in its November issue.
Most people think of diamond as a gemstone, yet the material is also valuable for technology. It conducts heat extremely well, so it can help to cool electronic devices. Its electrical behavior could suit electronics that control large amounts of power, and since light passes through it, it is useful for optical parts too. For these uses, diamond has to be made into thin, precisely shaped plates called substrates. However, its extreme hardness makes this very difficult to do with ordinary mechanical tools.
Word in this story
To cut something into thin, flat pieces, or to cut a thin piece from it.
On November 2, 2026, Chiba University in Japan reported on a new way to slice diamonds that are grown in a laboratory.