Why I think science gems are the future

An issue I find with most lab grown gems is that they don't seem very interesting. They’re usually made to look like the gems found on earth and it just feels like a cheaper copy. They are also not always as ethical as people assume; most are made in Chinese factories where we don’t know a huge amount about the welfare standards of the workers.

Science gems seem much more interesting to me, they are designed to have fascinating optical properties, such as colour change and luminosity. The lumo garnets I use basically glow in sunlight, and even more so under UV light.

Lumo garnets like LuAg and GAGG are used as scintillator crystals, which light up when hit by certain types of high-energy particles, like X-rays or gamma rays.

When invisible high-energy particles (like X-rays or gamma rays) hit the scintillator crystal, the crystal absorbs that energy. The crystal then releases the absorbed energy as visible light, essentially turning the invisible particles into light that we can see or measure. The light produced by the crystal is detected by special sensors or cameras, which convert it into an image or data. This allows scientists, doctors, or security personnel to "see" or analyse the radiation.

Common Uses:

• Medical Imaging: In devices like CT scanners or PET scanners, where the glowing from the crystal helps create images of the inside of the body.
• Radiation Detectors: In labs or safety equipment, where they help detect and measure radiation levels.
• Security Scanners: At airports or other secure locations, where they help detect hidden objects by sensing radiation.

In short, a scintillator crystal helps turn invisible radiation into visible light, allowing us to detect and measure it.

I’m also a fan of laser garnets such as Cr:YAG otherwise known as 'Christmas garnet. It’s a vibrant green in indoor lighting and shows flashes of red in sunlight. Under UV it fluoresces bright red.

As far as I’m aware, these are only made for science and industry purposes. The gems we use were not suitable for their intended purpose, as they have to meet very exacting standards. This could be because of slight inclusions, contaminations or simply that they are offcuts.

Using these gemstones seems like a no brainer. They look more interesting than any other lab grown or natural gem (in my opinion), plus the fact that they weren’t created for jewellery and are essentially a waste product is a big ethical green flag.

Some of the gems we use only recently became available to buy, so I predict that more and more jewellers will start using them in the future.