Scientists from North Carolina State University have discovered a new form of solid carbon, called Q-carbon, and it has some unusual properties: Q-carbon is ferromagnetic, incredibly hard, and glows when exposed to energy. These properties make it different from the other forms of carbon and the researchers discovered that Q-carbon can be used to construct diamond structures at room temperature.

To create Q-carbon, it's necessary to have two things: a substrate material (e.g., glass, plastic or sapphire) which is coated with amorphous carbon. Then, it is shot with laser pulse for about 200 nanoseconds, heating it up to 4000 degrees Kelvin (3726 ° C; 6,740 ° F). Then carbon quickly cools crystallizing into Q-carbon. Q-carbon has been produced in films between 20 to 500 nanometers thick.

Scientists don't have much information about the properties of the new material, and still in the early stages of understanding how to manipulate it, but they are actively working on it.

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