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The phase transition of iron under shock compression has attracted much attention in recent decades because of its importance in fields such as condensed matter physics, geophysics, and metallurgy. At room temperature, the transition of iron from the α-phase (bcc) to the ε-phase (hpc) occurs at a stress of 13 GPa. At high temperature, a triple point followed by transformation to the γ-phase (fcc) is expected. However, the details of the high-temperature phase transitions of iron are still under debate. Here, we investigate the phase-transition behavior of polycrystalline iron under compression from room temperature to 820 K. The results show that the shock-induced phase transition is determined unequivocally from the measured three-wave-structure profiles, which clearly consist of an elastic wave, a plastic wave, and a phase-transition wave. The phase transition is temperature-dependent, with an average rate Δσtr/ΔT of -6.91 MPa/K below 700 K and -34.7 MPa/K at higher temperatures. The shock α-ε and α-γ phase boundaries intersect at 10.6 ± 0.53 GPa and 763 K, which agrees with the α-ε-γ triple point from early shock wave experiments and recent laser-heated diamond-anvil cell resistivity and in situ X-ray diffraction data but disagrees with the shock pressure-temperature phase diagram reported in 2009 by Zaretsky. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel explanation of the quasi-elastic release phenomenon in shock-compressed aluminum is presented. A dislocation-based model, taking into account dislocation substructures and evolution, is applied to simulate the elastic-plastic response of both single-crystal and polycrystalline aluminum. The calculated results are in good agreement with experimental results from not only the velocity profiles but also the shear strength and dislocation density, which demonstrate the accuracy of our simulations. Simulated results indicate that dislocation immobilization during dynamic deformation results in a smooth increase in the yield stress, which leads to the quasielastic release, while the generation of dislocations caused by the plastic release wave results in the appearance of a transition point between the quasi-elastic release and the plastic release in the profile. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Strong oxides at high shock pressures have broad crossovers from elastic solids at ambient to failure by plastic deformation, to heterogeneous deformation to weak solids, to fluid-like solids that equilibrate thermally in a few ns, to melting and, at sufficiently high shock pressures and temperatures, to metallic fluid oxides. This sequence of crossovers in single-crystal cubic Gd3Ga5O12 (Gd-Ga Garnet-GGG) has been diagnosed by fast emission spectroscopy using a 16-channel optical pyrometer in the spectral range 400-800 nm with bandwidths per channel of 10 nm, a writing time of ~1000 ns and time resolution of 3 ns. Spectra were measured at shock pressures from 40 to 290 GPa (100 GPa=1 Mbar) with corresponding gray-body temperatures from 3000 to 8000 K. Experimental lifetimes were a few 100 ns. Below 130 GPa, emission is heterogeneous and measured temperatures are indicative of melting temperatures in grain boundary regions rather than bulk temperatures. At 130 GPa and 2200 K, GGG equilibrates thermally and homogeneously in a thin opaque shock front. This crossover has a characteristic spectral signature in going from partially transmitting shock-heated material behind the shock front to an opaque shock front. Opacity is caused by optical scattering and absorption of light generated by fast compression. GGG melts at ~5000K in a two-phase region at shock pressures in the range 200 GPa to 217 GPa. Hugoniot equation-of-state data were measured by a Doppler Pin SystemDPS with ps time resolution and are generally consistent with previous data. Extrapolation of previous electrical conductivity measurements indicates that GGG becomes a poor metal at a shock pressure above ~400 GPa. Because the shock impedance of GGG is higher than that of Al2O3 used previously to make metallic fluid H (MFH), the use of GGG to make MFH will achieve higher pressures and lower temperatures than use of Al2O3. However, maximum dynamic pressures at which emission temperatures of fluid hydrogen made by shock reverberation between GGG anvils could be measured remains limited to ~130 GPa, as for Al2O3 anvils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pressure dependence of the yield strength of tantalum was investigated experimentally up to 101 GPa at room temperature using a diamond anvil cell. A yield strength softening is observed between 52 and 84 GPa, whereas a normal trend is observed below 52 GPa and above 84 GPa. The onset pressure of the softening is in agreement with previous results obtained by the pressure gradient method and shock wave experiments. This unusual strength softening in tantalum is not related with structural transformation, preferred orientation, or material damage. Our measurements indicate that microscopic deviatoric strain is the major reason for the observed strength softening in tantalum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pressure-volume-temperature (P-V-T) equation of state (EOS) of MgO is widely used as a pressure scale in static compression experiments. However, there are remarkable inconsistencies among different previously proposed MgO pressure scales. We calculated the P-V-T EOS of MgO up to 300 GPa and 3000 K based on experimental shock Hugoniot data and a simple thermal pressure model within the Mie-Grüneisen-type analysis framework. All of the parameters used can be measured experimentally with high accuracies. We found that, in overall, the calculated P-V-T EOS of MgO has excellent agreement with the available volume compression data over a wide range of pressure and temperature. A comparison of our results with the previous theoretical investigations has also been performed and confirms that our calculated P-V-T EOS of MgO can be used as a reliable pressure scale for static experiments at high pressures and high temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A thermodynamic equation of state (EOS) for thermoelectrons is derived which is appropriate for investigating the thermodynamic variations along isobaric paths. By using this EOS and the WuJing (WJ) model, [Q. Wu and F. Jing J. Appl. Phys. 80, 4343 (1996)] an extended Hugoniot EOS model is developed which can predict the compression behavior of highly porous materials. Theoretical relationships for the shock temperature, bulk sound velocity, and the isentrope are developed. This method has the advantage of being able to model the behavior of porous metals over the full range of applicability of pressure and porosity, whereas methods proposed in the past have been limited in their applicability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to verify and validate the newly developed thermoelectron equation of state (EOS) model that is based on the Wu-Jing EOS [J. Appl. Phys. 80, 4343 (1996); Appl. Phys. Lett. 67, 49 (1995)], calculations of shock compression behavior have been made on five different porous metals: iron, copper, lead, tungsten, and aluminum which are commonly used as standards. The model was used to calculate the Hugoniot, shock temperature, sound velocity, and unloading isentrope for these materials and comparisons were made to previous calculations and available data. Based on these comparisons, it is felt that the model provides information in good agreement with the corresponding experimental and theoretical data published previously. This suggests that the new model can satisfactorily describe the properties of shocked porous materials over a wide range of pressure and porosity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have demonstrated enhanced light emission from a CdSe/ZnS quantum dot scintillator film in the normal direction by photonic crystal structures. With the control of the photonic crystal structures, a two-fold enhancement was achieved for the wavelength-integrated emission spectra under the excitation of both ultra-violet and X-rays, which is beneficial to radiation detection applications. Furthermore, it is found that the optical properties such as the bandwidth and peak wavelength can be controlled by adjusting the thickness of a TiO2 conformal layer which was deposited on the surface of the photonic crystal slab formed from solidified resist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have demonstrated that periodical arrays of silver nanoparticles can enhance the light emission from a plastic scintillator layer on the surface of a silicon substrate. The enhancement is attributed to surface lattice resonances with a photonic-plasmonic nature. Although the enhancement exhibits directional characteristics for individual wavelengths, the wavelength-integrated enhancement shows a monotonous increase with increasing emission angle. As a result, an overall 1.81-fold wavelength- and angle-integrated enhancement has been obtained. This observation is promising for fundamental and applied research into enhanced luminescent material layers on opaque substrates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A capillary co-flow focusing process is developed to generate stimuli-responsive microbubbles (SRMs) that comprise perfluorocarbon (PFC) suspension of silver nanoparticles (SNPs) in a lipid shell. Upon continuous laser irradiation at around their surface plasmon resonance band, the SNPs effectively absorb electromagnetic energy, induce heat accumulation in SRMs, trigger PFC vaporization, and eventually lead to thermal expansion and fragmentation of the SRMs. This optical droplet vaporization (ODV) process is further simulated by a theoretical model that combines heat generation of SNPs, phase change of PFC, and thermal expansion of SRMs. The model is validated by benchtop experiments, where the ODV process is monitored by microscopic imaging. The effects of primary process parameters on behaviors of ODV are predicted by the theoretical model, indicating the technical feasibility for process control and optimization in future drug delivery applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A whipple shield using Al/PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) energetic material to protect against space debris is presented. The hypervelocity impact characteristics were investigated experimentally using a two-stage light gas gun at velocities between 3 and 6 km/s. A good protection of the shield was obtained through comparative experiments which used the same bumper areal density. The results showed that the critical projectile diameter can be improved by 28% by contrast with the Christiansen ballistic limit equations. The Al/PTFE energetic material bumper can break up the projectile into smaller, less massive, and slower projectiles due to the combined effect of impact and explosion, thereby producing a sharp rise in the spacecraft protection ability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A compact fiber-optic vector magnetometer based on directional scattering between polarized plasmon waves and ferro-magnetic nanoparticles is demonstrated. The sensor configuration reported in this work uses a short section of tilted fiber Bragg grating (TFBG) coated with a nanometer scale gold film and packaged with a magnetic fluid (Fe3O4) inside a capillary. The transmission spectrum of the sensor provides a fine comb of narrowband resonances that overlap with a broader absorption of the surface plasmon resonance (SPR). The wavelength of the SPR attenuation in transmission shows high sensitivity to slight perturbations by magnetic fields, due to the strong directional scattering between the SPR attenuated cladding modes and the magnetic fluid near the fiber surface. Both the orientation (2 nm/deg) and the intensity (1.8 nm/mT) of magnetic fields can be determined unambiguously from the TFBG spectrum. Temperature cross sensitivity can be referenced out by monitoring the wavelength of the core mode resonance simultaneously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of reverse-impact experiments were performed on vanadium at shock pressure ranging from 32GPa to 88GPa. Particle velocity profiles measured at sample/LiF window interface were used to estimate the sound velocities, shear modulus, and yield stress in shocked vanadium. A phase transition at ~60.5 GPa that may be the body-centered cubic (BCC) to rhombohedral structure was identified by the discontinuity of the sound velocity against shock pressure. This transition pressure is consistent with the results from diamond anvil cell (DAC) experiments and first-principle calculations. However, present results show that the rhombohedral phase has higher strength and shear modulus than the BCC phase, which is contrast to the findings from DAC experiments and theoretical work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A wavelength swapping nondegenerate pump-probe technique to measure the magnitudes of the nonlinear optical dynamics as well as the relaxation time of electrons in high energy levels is presented using a ZnS single crystal wafer as an example. By pumping the sample with 800 nm femtosecond pulses and probing at 400 nm, nondegenerate two-photon absorption (N-2PA) happens exclusively, and the measured curves only show instantaneous features without relaxation tails. The N-2PA coefficient was derived explicitly as 7.52 cm/GW. Additionally, when the wavelengths of the pump and probe beams are swapped, extra information about the relaxation time of the hot electrons excited in the conduction band is obtained. The combined results above are helpful for evaluating the characteristics of an optical switches based on ZnS or other materials with respect to its nonlinear optical dynamic aspect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the fabrication and characterization of a lead-silicate glass microsphere resonator. We show that at the wavelengths near 1555 nm high Q modes can be efficiently excited from a 109 μm diameter lead-silicate glass microsphere via evanescent coupling using a tapered silica fiber with a waist diameter of 2 μm. Resonances with Q-factors as high as 0.9×107 were observed. This is very close to the theoretical material-limited Q-factor and is the highest Q-factor reported so far from a nonlinear glass microsphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Details a study of a gallium phosphide, hemispherical, solid immersion lens through the imaging of 40-nanometer-diameter fluorescent dye balls. Spatial resolution as small as 139 nanometer at a wavelength of 560 nanometer; Diffraction-limited system of numerical aperture 2.0.

Derives a thermodynamic equation-of-state (EOS) for porous materials in a wide pressure range. Combination of EOS with Rankine-Hugoniot relations for material behavior prediction; Development of a theoretical model valid for Hugoniot predictions; Determination of a porous material volume under isobaric conditions.