Study of imperfect natural diamonds with the application of the X-ray synchrotron radiation (the "Laue-SR" method)

The "Laue-SR" method has been realised for fast gathering experimental data in the Study of imperfect natural and synthesised diamonds which are hard to investigate with the conventional X-ray methods. Time to obtain a diffra ction pattern with the use of the polychromatic SIR is shorter by several o rders; the resolution or the image of substructure defects of a crystal lat tice (as compared to the conventional Laue method) is improved by an order and does not vanish even at large disorientation or other non-coherent dist urbances of the crystal lattice. The "Laue-SR" method is especially appropr iate for the study of intact, sufficiently large diamond crystals (up to 5 mm), since the diamond has a small coefficient of the X-ray absorption and is practically transparent in the operational range of the SR waves, lambda = 0.5-1.5 Angstrom. This method was shown to be applied successfully for a n accelerated study or a large bulk of imperfect natural diamond crystals w ithout any preliminary preparation and without their destruction, which enl arges the information output in the study and, besides that, increases sign ificantly the efficiency of the work. X-ray "Laue-SR" topograms of imperfec t diamonds with different types of distortions of the crystal lattice by na tural processes during the formation of the diamonds and by epigenetic impa cts are shown. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.