Which term designates a small notch on a facet junction with no readily apparent depth at 10X, usually along the girdle edge or at the culet?

Which term designates a small notch on a facet junction with no readily apparent depth at 10X, usually along the girdle edge or at the culet?

• A. Open-pit mining
• B. Normal
• C. Needle (Ndl)
• D. Nick (Nk)

Answer: (D)

A nick is a small notch along a facet junction, usually sitting on the girdle edge or at the culet, that is shallow and may not show depth when viewed at 10x magnification. Because the notch is so shallow, the depth isn’t readily apparent at this magnification, which is why it’s described as having no obvious depth. It’s a surface blemish, different from an internal inclusion, and its location along a facet junction makes it noticeable only on careful inspection. A needle refers to a slender internal crystal inclusion, not a notch on the facet junction; open-pit mining describes a mining method, not a diamond surface defect; normal isn’t a term used for this kind of surface feature. So the best designation for this shallow facet-junction notch is nick.

A nick is a small notch along a facet junction, usually sitting on the girdle edge or at the culet, that is shallow and may not show depth when viewed at 10x magnification. Because the notch is so shallow, the depth isn’t readily apparent at this magnification, which is why it’s described as having no obvious depth. It’s a surface blemish, different from an internal inclusion, and its location along a facet junction makes it noticeable only on careful inspection. A needle refers to a slender internal crystal inclusion, not a notch on the facet junction; open-pit mining describes a mining method, not a diamond surface defect; normal isn’t a term used for this kind of surface feature. So the best designation for this shallow facet-junction notch is nick.