Why do well cut diamonds refract light???

Answer 1

A well-polished diamond is the work of a master cutter.

When cut to good proportions, the diamond is better able to disperse light, creating more brilliance, more scintillation and more sparkle.

And that’s a great reflection on you.

Diamonds are cut into a number of shapes, depending on the nature of the rough stone.

The most popular are round brilliant cut, princess cut, radiant cut and emerald cut.

The choice depends on the requirements of your jewellery design, and personal preference.

Brilliant cut Diamonds are graded with respect to proportions and their ability to refract light effectively.
Polish and symmetry are also taken into consideration.

"Poor" light refraction. "Ideal" Light refraction.

Kangas are expert at advising you on the most suitable cut quality for your particular needs.

Below are a few simplified guidelines:

1. AGS™ 000 Ideal Cut and GIA™ Excellent are for those seeking "nothing but the best".

2. AGS™ and GIA™ Very Good & Good are premium quality and offer the excellent "value" without compromise.

3. AGS™ and GIA™ Fair offer "fair value" when budget is a major consideration.

4. AGS™ and GIA™ Poor are "poor" value.

Answer 2

"Refraction" describes the effects on a light wave from transitioning between two media with different lightspeeds (refractive indices). The speed of light in diamond is less than half its speed in a vacuum.

The only effect of the cut on a diamond is where the light waves end up as they refract. Any diamond that transmits light is refracting it if it is surrounded by a medium (say, air) with a different refractive index.

You can read up on this at:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/diamond/sparkle.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refraction

Answer 3

Because the precision of the angles inside the diamond gets the light moving through the diamond-- which is brighter than what the human eye is used to seeing through other clear substances.


Or something like that.