Carbon a streak on paper (hence its name, from the Greek verb "γράφειν" which means "to write"), while diamond is the hardest naturally occurring material known. Graphite is a good electrical conductor while diamond has a low electrical conductivity. Under normal conditions, diamond, carbon nanotubes, and graphene have the highest thermal conductivities of all known materials. All carbon allotropes are solids under normal conditions, with graphite being the most thermodynamically stable form at standard temperature and pressure. They are chemically resistant and require high temperature to react even with oxygen. The most common oxidation state of carbon in inorganic compounds is
Material properties of diamond a helpful role, especially in large stones where the cutter wishes to remove flawed material or to produce more than one stone from the same piece of rough (e.g. Cullinan Diamond). Diamonds crystallize in the diamond cubic crystal system (space group Fdm) and consist of tetrahedrally, covalently bonded carbon atoms. A second form called lonsdaleite, with hexagonal symmetry, has also been found, but it is extremely rare and forms only in meteorites or in laboratory synthesis. The local environment of each atom is identical in the two structures. From theoretical considerations, lonsdaleite is expected to be harder than diamond, but