Feature
Gems & Gemology, Winter 2010, Volume 46, No. 4
Synthetic Gem Materials in the 2000s: a Decade in Review
Nathan Renfro, John I. Koivula, Wuyi Wang, and Gary Roskin
The first decade of the 2000s brought a constant flow of previously known synthetics into the marketplace, but little in the way of new technology. The biggest development was the commercial introduction of faceted single-crystal gem-quality CVD synthetic diamonds. A few other interesting and noteworthy synthetics, such as Malossi hydrothermal synthetic emeralds and Mexifire synthetic opals, also entered the market. Identification of synthetic gem materials continued to be an important function of—and, in some cases, challenge for—gemologists worldwide.
