Platelets and the 110 a0 4 {001} stacking fault in diamond

Electron microscopy reveals the presence of {001} platelets in annealed, nitrogen containing diamond. These extended planar defects give rise to a large displacement of the surrounding material, are correlated with luminescence and optical absorption, and are characterized by the B' vibrational band above the one-phonon maximum. A recent proposal for an atomic structure for these defects is made up from a 110 a0 4 shear in the {001} plane, resulting in C-C double bonds aligned along 001. We show here that not only is this structure inconsistent with experimental observations, but it is unstable and reconstructs to form a largely passive stacking fault defect which also has properties inconsistent with the platelet. © 2006 The American Physical Society.