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How is Q-carbon made from elemental carbon?
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carbon group element
Modern version of the periodic table of the elements (printable).
Q-carbon is a synthetic form of carbon that is both crystalline and magnetic. It is created by taking a sample of elemental carbon and raising its temperature to 4,000 K (3,727 °C or 6,740 °F), followed by a process of rapid cooling.1
This material is notable for being harder than diamond and can be utilized to manufacture diamond structures, such as microneedles and films, within its own matrix. While it is currently produced synthetically in laboratory settings, scientists have hypothesized that similar conditions could potentially allow Q-carbon to form naturally within the cores of some planets.1