New materials, Q-carbon & Q-BN, harder than diamond w/ ferromagnetism & high-temp superconductivity

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We have invented new materials named Q-carbon and Q-BN, and novel processes for direct conversion of carbon into diamond and h-BN into c-BN. By our inventions, amorphous carbon can be converted into diamond or a new phase of carbon (Q-carbon) at ambient temperatures and pressures in air by nanosecond laser melting and rapid quenching. The Q-carbon and its cousin Q-BN have many unique and far superior properties. The Q-phases exhibit higher hardness than diamond, Q-carbon is ferromagnetic with Curie temperature above 500K (when pure), and high-temperature superconductor, when doped with boron, and has extra negative electron affinity. By controlling the nucleation and growth, we can create diamond nanodots, nanoneedles, microneedles, micro- and macro-size diamonds, and large-area single-crystal films. These and c-BN structures can be doped with n- and p-type dopants with solubility limits far in excess of thermodynamic limits via solute trapping. These four classes of materials in various forms open unprecedented opportunities ranging from cutting, polishing, high-speed matching, ,deep-sea drilling, magnetic sensors, targeted drug therapy to biomarkers and quantum computing.

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