The Road to Commercialization of Vapor-Phase-Grown Diamond

Abstract

Considering all materials, diamond has many superior properties such as elastic constant (hardness), thermal conductivity, transparency to optical visible light and x-rays, a wide-bandgap semiconductor, and negative electron affinity. These properties lead to various applications in many industries. Because of the recent successful development of vapor-phase-growth technology, large-area diamond is available at a low manufacturing cost. However the commercialization of diamond at this stage is limited to tools, speaker diaphragms, heatsinks, and optical windows. For each application, diamond utilization is limited.In this article, three avenues on the road to commercialization of vapor-phase-grown diamond will be discussed. The categories appear in Table I with the properties of diamond and its applications. First, applications already commercialized are briefly reviewed, and the requirements for expanding their market are discussed. Second, the technologies and applications coming in the near term are introduced. Last, future candidate applications for diamond are introduced along with technical obstacles to be overcome.