Sapphire derive their name from the Latin word Sapphirus meaning blue, and are often referred to as the ‘gem of the heavens’ or the ‘celestial gem’ as their colors mirror the sky at different times of the day.
Synthetic gems have the same chemical, optical, and physical properties of their natural counterparts, but are a more cost-effective alternative to a natural gem. The blue sapphires from Sri Lanka are known as Ceylon Sapphire. The molten powder repeatedly falls from the flame onto a rotating pedestal, creating a synthetic crystal, called a boule, which can later be faceted into a gemstone. Powdered chemicals (the building blocks of the gem) are dropped through a high-temperature flame. The flame fusion process for creating gems, also called the Verneuil process, is the most affordable and common synthesis method for producing corundum (ruby and sapphire) and spinel. When two or more intersecting bands appear, a star pattern is formed. Light that strikes the inclusions within the gem reflects off of the inclusions, creating a narrow band of light. Synthetic star sapphire exhibits the optical phenomenon called asterism, a star-like pattern created on the surface of a gemstone when light encounters parallel fibrous, or needle-like, inclusions within its crystal structure.
0 kommentar(er)
