Element Six – a company controlled by De Beers, the world’s biggest maker of artificial diamonds – has set up a $100m venture fund to promote the use of these materials in areas from artificial hips and knees to electronics and water purification.

The Luxembourg-based company – in which the South African mining group holds a 60 per cent stake – plans to use the fund to take minority stakes in new businesses round the world that would exploit the unusual technical characteristics of artificial diamonds.