Engineering topics

Hemley, R. J.

Publications and source records attributed to Hemley, R. J..

25 records · Page 2

NASA NTRS1989

New transformations between crystalline and amorphous ice

High-pressure optical and spectroscopic techniques were used to obtain directly the ice I(h) - hda-ice transformation in a diamond-anvil cell, and the stability of the amorphous form is examined as functions of pressure and temperature. It is demonstrated that hda-ice transforms abruptly at 4 GPa and 77 K to a crystalline phase close in structure to orientationally disordered ice-VII and to a more highly ordered, ice-VIII-like structure at higher temperatures. This is the first time that an amorphous solid is observed to convert to a crystalline solid at low temperatures by compression alone. Phase transitions of this type may be relevant on icy planetary satellites, and there may also be implications for the high-pressure behavior of silica.

Hemley, R. J.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Phase transition in solid molecular hydrogen at ultrahigh pressures

Solid normal hydrogen was compressed in a diamond-anvil cell to pressures above 200 GPa. Spontaneous Raman spectra demonstrate that the solid undergoes a structural phase transformation beginning at 145 GPa at 77 K, as evidenced by an abrupt discontinuity in the intramolecular vibron frequency as a function of pressure. The magnitude of the vibron-frequency shift and the pressure-temperature conditions of the phase transformation are consistent with its identification as the theoretically predicted pressure-induced orientational ordering of the molecular solid.

Hemley, R. J.↗

NASA NTRS1988

High-pressure phase diagram and equation of state of solid helium from single-crystal X-ray diffraction to 23.3 GPa

Single-crystal X-ray diffraction measurements have been performed on solid He-4 from 15.6 to 23.3 GPa at 300 K with synchrotron radiation. The diffraction patterns demonstrate that the structure of the solid is hexagonal close packed over this pressure-temperature range, contrary to both the interpretation of high-pressure optical studies and to theoretical predictions. The solid is more compressible than is indicated by equations of state calculated with recently determined helium pair potentials. The results suggest that a significant revision of current views of the phase diagram and energetics of dense solid helium is in order.

Mao, H. K.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Synchrotron X-ray diffraction measurements of single-crystal hydrogen to 26.5 gigapascals

The crystal structure and equation of state of solid hydrogen have been determined directly to 26.5 gigapascals at room temperature by new synchrotron X-ray diffraction techniques. Solid hydrogen remains in the hexagonal close packed structure under these pressure-temperature conditions and exhibits increasing structural anisotropy with pressure. The pressure-volume curve determined from the X-ray data represents the most accurate experimental measurement of the equation of state to date in this pressure range. The results remove the discrepancy between earlier indirect determinations and provide a new experimental constraint on the molecular-to-atomic transition predicted at higher pressures.

Mao, H. K.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Crystal structure and density of helium to 232 kbar

The properties of helium and hydrogen at high pressure are topics of great interest to the understanding of planetary interiors. These materials constitute 95 percent of the entire solar system. A technique was presented for the measurement of X-ray diffraction from single-crystals of low-Z condenses gases in a diamond-anvil cell at high pressure. The first such single-crystal X-ray diffraction measurements on solid hydrogen to 26.5 GPa were presented. The application of this technique to the problem of the crystal structure, equation of state, and phase diagram of solid helium is reported. Crucial for X-ray diffraction studies of these materials is the use of a synchrotron radiation source which provides high brillance, narrow collimation of the incident and diffracted X-ray beams to reduce the background noise, and energy-dispersive diffraction techniques with polychromatic (white) radiation, which provides high detection efficiency.

Mao, H. K.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Laser techniques in high-pressure geophysics

Laser techniques in conjunction with the diamond-anvil cell can be used to study high-pressure properties of materials important to a wide range of problems in earth and planetary science. Spontaneous Raman scattering of crystalline and amorphous solids at high pressure demonstrates that dramatic changes in structure and bonding occur on compression. High-pressure Brillouin scattering is sensitive to the pressure variations of single-crystal elastic moduli and acoustic velocities. Laser heating techniques with the diamond-anvil cell can be used to study phase transitions, including melting, under deep-earth conditions. Finally, laser-induced ruby fluorescence has been essential for the development of techniques for generating the maximum pressures now possible with the diamond-anvil cell, and currently provides a calibrated in situ measure of pressure well above 100 gigapascals.

Hemley, R. J.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Ultrahigh pressures - Optical observations and Raman measurements of hydrogen and deuterium to 1.47 Mbar

Hydrogen and deuterium have been pressurized under static conditions to 1.47 Mbar, which is higher by a factor of 2 than the static data of Sharma et al. (1980). Measurements of the vibron indicate an initial increase and then a sharp decrease in frequency at pressures above 0.5 Mbar. At 1.14 Mbar the vibron frequency decreased to the zero-pressure value, and at 1.47 Mbar the frequency of the vibron in hydrogen is 90/cm below the value of the vibrational mode of the isolated molecule. This pronounced softening of the vibron suggests strengthened intermolecular interaction.

Mao, H. K.↗