Colors - Diamond

Gem quality diamond may be colorless or occur in any hue including the non-spectral hues of gray, brown and black. Diamond is the only gemstone composed of a single element, carbon.

ring

The diamond crystal lattice is exceptionally strong and only three atoms; Nitrogen, Boron and Hydrogen are small enough to work their way into the tetrahedral arrangement that is the basic unit of the diamond crystal.

Nitrogen is the smallest and by far the most common impurity found in gem diamonds. Nitrogen is responsible for the yellow, brown and sometimes the pink color in diamonds.

Diamond ring and gem stone diamond jewelery - Diamond Seorce

Boron is responsible for the gray blue colors and Hydrogen is the coloring agent for some red, olive, violet and blue diamonds.

Color in diamond has two additional sources: atomic, normally gamma radiation, that causes the color in green diamonds and physical deformation of the diamond crystal known as plastic deformation.

Diamonds

Plastic deformation is the cause of color in some pink and in red diamonds.