Gemological tools

10x Loupe Your most-used instrument, start every examination here Highly portable $ 15 - 150 Chelsea Filter Quick chromium test, key for emeralds and rubies Highly portable $ 20 - 80 DiamondView UV Imaging Deep UV imaging for diamond growth structure, HPHT clues, and lab-grown screening Low portability $ 15000 - 90000 Dichroscope Reveals pleochroism, instantly eliminates singly-refractive stones Highly portable $ 50 - 200 Fiber Optic Halogen Illuminator Intense pinpoint white light for inclusions, fractures, and treatment clues Low portability $ 150 - 900 FTIR Spectrometer Laboratory infrared fingerprinting for polymers, fillers, coatings, and some treatments Low portability $ 8000 - 60000 Gemological Microscope The field lab workhorse ÔÇö inclusions, fractures, treatments, and surface features at 10ÔÇô40x Low portability $ 200 - 1500 Heavy Liquids (SG Indicator Set) Fast specific gravity sorting for opaque and mixed parcel stones Moderately portable $ 50 - 300 High CRI Penlight Tiny concentrated white spot for field checks, inclusions, fire, and fractures Highly portable $ 10 - 120 Hydrostatic Scale Measures specific gravity, works even on opaque stones Moderately portable $ 100 - 500 Immersion Microscope See every internal detail clearly, the professional standard Low portability $ 300 - 2000 Moissanite Tester Electrical conductivity test ÔÇö the only reliable way to separate moissanite from diamond Highly portable $ 40 - 200 Polariscope Determines single vs. double refraction, quick and conclusive Low portability $ 100 - 400 Raman and Photoluminescence Spectrometer Advanced spectral testing for gem ID, diamond color centers, and treatment evidence Low portability $ 12000 - 120000 Refractometer Measures refractive index, the backbone of gem identification Moderately portable $ 80 - 500 Spectroscope Reads characteristic absorption lines, confirms chromium, iron, copper Highly portable $ 40 - 200 Thermal Probe Confirms diamond, but always follow up with a moissanite tester Highly portable $ 20 - 150 Trace Element Analyzer Chemical testing for diffusion, origin clues, and trace-element treatment detection Low portability $ 30000 - 250000 UV Lamp, Long Wave and Short Wave Fluorescence exposes treatments, synthetics, and origin Moderately portable $ 30 - 300