Say What? Materials Science

Qingsongite

CHING-sohng-ite n.

Natural qingsongite, which is a cubic boron nitride, was first found in chromium-rich rocks in Tibet in 2009.

Larissa Dobrzhinetskaya

By Sarah Zielinski

- More than 2 years ago

A newly christened mineral has an atomic structure that’s similar to diamond and nearly as hard. Qingsongite was first created in the laboratory in 1957, and geologists first found natural qingsongite, which is a cubic boron nitride, in chromium-rich rocks in Tibet in 2009.