Similar conditions are employed in the method currently used to synthesize 99% of all artificially created diamonds. Called high-pressure and high-temperature (HPHT) growth, this method uses these extreme settings to coax carbondissolved in liquid metals, like iron, to convert it to diamond around a small seed, or starter diamond. 

However, the high pressures and temperatures are difficult to produce and maintain. Plus, the components involved affect the diamonds’ size, with the largest being about a cubic centimeter, or about as big as a blueberry. Besides, HPHT takes a fairly long time — a week or two — to produce even these tiny gems. Another method, called chemical vapor deposition, eliminates some requirements of HPHT, like high pressures. But others persist, like the need for seeds.

The new technique eliminates some drawbacks of both synthesis processes. A team led by Rodney Ruoff, a physical chemist at the Institute for Basic Science in South Korea, published their findings April 24 in the journal Nature.