Patent ID: 8192713
Filing Date: 2012-06-05
Classification: A44C,C30B,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A method of incorporating a mark of origin or fingerprint in a CVD single crystal diamond material, which comprises providing a diamond substrate, providing a source gas, dissociating the source gas thereby allowing homoepitaxial diamond growth, and introducing in a controlled manner one or more chemical dopants into the synthesis process in order to produce the mark of origin or fingerprint, in the form of defect centres that emit radiation of a characteristic wavelength when excited, in the synthetic diamond material, wherein the concentration of the one or more chemical dopants is such that the mark of origin or fingerprint is not visually detectable under normal viewing conditions, and does not affect the perceived quality of the diamond material under normal viewing conditions, and wherein the one or more dopants producing the mark of origin or fingerprint do not produce a perceptible color under normal viewing conditions, but which mark of origin or fingerprint is detectable or rendered detectable by visual detection or using optical instrumentation when exposed to illuminating light of a wavelength that has insufficient energy to excite electrons right across the band gap in diamond, that is capable of exciting the defect centres and is shorter than the characteristic wavelength of the emitted radiation, wherein the mark of origin or fingerprint is provided in the form of one or more layers or regions grown into the CVD single crystal diamond material during synthesis, and wherein the material is a gemstone.