2006-08-30 15:10:40 · 11 answers · asked by tom science 4 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Earth Sciences & Geology
I love Nova, the PBS series. Below are some exerps from their website on diamonds and their sparkle.
"Diamond's tight crystalline structure slows light down like no other substance on Earth."
"Light pokes along inside a diamond at less than 80,000 miles per second. That's more than 100,000 miles per second slower than in air. "
"Diamond plays this reflecting trick better than any other colorless substance. Light enters a faceted gemstone from all sides, but it may bounce back and forth several times inside before it finds a clean, straight shot out. All this changing direction accomplishes something very dramatic, because so-called white light actually contains all of the rainbow's colors. Each color - red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet - bends and reflects inside the diamond slightly differently. The farther the light travels, the more the colors separate, or "disperse." Bounce light inside a diamond just two or three times and the colors disperse spectacularly."
To paraphrase: Because of the very dense (carbon, with some other impurities) pattern of atoms in the diamond, when light enters and refracts inside a diamond, it bends and disperses light more so than in other less dense materials.
2006-08-30 15:23:22 · answer #1 · answered by wotana02 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Diamond Shines Because Of
2017-01-19 09:06:18 · answer #2 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is true that the diamond has a very high refractive index due to which the light travels a lot within the diamond before it comes out. thus making the diamond to shine.
However not every piece of diamond will shine equally.
The quality of a diamond is judged on the basis of 4 C's i.e Cut, Color, Clarity, and Carat Weight.
All these factors contribute to the brilliance and superiority of the diamond.
2006-08-30 15:17:36 · answer #3 · answered by LEPTON 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The index of refraction is definitely part of the answer. The angle the stone is cut at ensures that a majority of the light incident on the face of the stone is reflected around the interior of the stone and then straight out through the face. If you will notice, most jewelry stores have spot light shining directly down onto their diamonds thus yielding the greatest "shine".
2006-08-30 15:15:32 · answer #4 · answered by bobb1 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The relatively high index of refraction causes light to reflect around inside the diamond better than glass.
2006-08-30 15:12:16 · answer #5 · answered by rscanner 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Diamond has a very high refractive index and it is cut at a certain angle allowing TIR (Total Internal Reflection) to occure
2014-02-09 01:32:34 · answer #6 · answered by ? 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Diamond has an fairly intense...perhaps the optimum, refractive index. It an excellent decrease maximum of the mild entering into the diamond is meditated lower back out. A crappy decrease loses, operating example, mild by the bottom of the stone.
2016-11-23 15:21:21 · answer #7 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because they reflect light and also act as a small prism, to display different colors of the rainbow when light is shone through them.
2006-08-30 15:13:12 · answer #8 · answered by Joy M 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
because of the materials and contents and the way the light hits them
2006-08-30 15:12:35 · answer #9 · answered by v-ballgurl 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
I don't have the slightes idea
2006-08-30 15:16:24 · answer #10 · answered by acid tongue 7 · 1⤊ 3⤋