what is moissanite diamonds

Moissanite is a naturally occurring silicon carbide and its various crystalline polymorphs. It is a rare mineral discovered by the French chemist Henri Moissan in 1893. Moissanite is useful for commercial and industrial applications due to its hardness, optical properties, and thermal conductivity. Moissanite was introduced to the jewelry market as a diamond alternative in 1998 after Charles & Colvard received patents to create and market lab-grown silicon carbide gemstones, becoming the first firm to do so. Moissanite is a lab-created gem that is often used as a diamond alternative because of its durability, sparkling appearance, and affordable price tag. It is a diamond simulant made of silicon carbide and is engineered to give the illusion of similarity to diamonds, but is compositionally and visually quite different. Moissanite has some optical properties that are different from diamonds, such as more fire and brilliance than a diamond. On the Mohs scale of mineral hardness, moissanite is rated as 9.25, making it a durable gemstone. While not a diamond at all, when using diamond testers that detect thermal conductivity, a moissanite gemstone will pass as an authentic diamond.