* Chauncey Guy Suits; Developed Synthetic Diamond Making
Chauncey Guy Suits, 86, a retired director of research for General Electric Co. who helped develop the synthetic diamond-making process. Suits, who held 77 U.S. patents, worked for GE for 35 years and served as vice president for research from 1945 to 1965. His inventions included railway signal improvements, submarine signals and theater light dimmers. In 1962, he announced a synthetic diamond-making process that utilized a hydraulic press that could heat carbon up to 9,000 degrees Fahrenheit. In Pilot Knob, N.Y., on Aug. 14 of cancer.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
