Publications

Isentropic compression experiments on dynamic solidification in tin

Davis, Jean-Paul D.; Davis, Jean-Paul D.; Hayes, Dennis B.

Isentropic compression experiments were performed on molten tin (initial temperature 500-600 K), using the Sandia Z Accelerator to generate magnetically driven, planar ramp waves compressing the tin across the equilibrium liquid-solid phase boundary. Velocity interferometry measured time-resolved wave profiles at the tin/window interface. The experiments exhibit a departure from expected liquid response, time-dependent behavior above 8 GPa, and, at higher pressure, reduced wave speed relative to calculations using a nonequilibrium phase-mixture model. These phenomena may be due to a nonequilibrium solidification process, but verification of this conjecture will require further work.