Can diamonds glow in the dark?

Yes, although this property is quite rare, diamonds are able to glow in the dark. This type of phenomenon attribute is referred to as fluorescence in the diamond industry. When fluorescent diamonds are exposed to ultraviolet light, they are able to absorb the radiation and then re-emit light rays back to their surroundings. An even rarer property is phosphorescence, which occurs when the diamond continues to glow even after the ultraviolet light is turned off. Scientifically, this glow is attributed to the interactions between the ultraviolet light, boron atoms and nitrogen atoms that appear in the diamond. Most diamonds will reemit a bluish-green light ray subsequent to UV exposure.

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Some diamonds are actually capable of glowing in the dark. On the rare occasion when diamonds glow in the dark, the effect is called fluorescence.

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The famous blue colored 45.5 carat Hope Diamond is an excellent example to such a diamond that glows in the dark. This unique diamond is actually phosphorescent which means that even after exposure to an ultraviolet source, the diamond will continue to glow for a short period of time. The Hope Diamond is known to emanate a beautiful reddish-orange glow for as long as a few minutes after UV exposure. After scientists visited the Natural History Museum vault, where the Hope is stored, with the appropriate spectrometer equipment they concluded that the Hope Diamond emits a stronger red glow than most other diamonds studied to date.

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