Strontium titanate is a colorless man-made material used as an imitation of diamond. It became a popular diamond simulant in the 1950s.
Properties
| Refractive index | 2.409 |
|---|---|
| Birefringence | None (singly refractive) |
| Optic character | Singly refractive |
| Dispersion | 0.19 |
| Specific gravity | 5.13 |
| Hardness (Mohs) | 5 to 6 |
| Crystal system | Cubic |
| Pleochroism | None |
| Absorption spectrum | Not recorded |
Published values. They change a little from stone to stone. Our tools do not model strontium titanate yet. Sources: GIA · Gemdat · geology.com
In more detail
It shows far more fire than diamond. It is much too soft to serve well as a diamond substitute. It is most often grown by the flame-fusion method.
Related terms
- Simulant: A simulant is a material that looks like a gem but has a different chemistry, structure and properties. Cubic zirconia, moissanite and glass are diamond simulants.
- Synthetic rutile: Synthetic rutile is a man-made material used as an early imitation of diamond. It was introduced in the late 1940s and is made by flame fusion.
- Flame fusion: Flame fusion grows synthetic crystals by dropping fine powder through a very hot flame. The melted drops build up a crystal on a pedestal below.
- Dispersion: Dispersion is how differently a stone bends red and violet light. Gemologists give it as the index difference between the B line (686.7 nm) and the G line (430.8 nm).
- Fire: Fire is the flashes of spectral color that a cut stone sends out. In our census, fire is the share of returned light whose colors leave more than 0.6° apart.
- Diamond: Diamond is a single element, carbon, with every atom bonded to four neighbors in a cubic crystal. It is the hardest gem, Mohs 10.