Non-isentropic release of a shocked solid

Journal article

We present molecular dynamics simulations of shock and release in micron-scale tantalum crystals that exhibit postbreakout temperatures far exceeding those expected under the standard assumption of isentropic release. We show via an energy-budget analysis that this is due to plastic-work heating from material strength that largely counters thermoelastic cooling. The simulations are corroborated by experiments where the release temperatures of laser-shocked tantalum foils are deduced from their thermal strains via in situ x-ray diffraction and are found to be close to those behind the shock.

Authors: Heighway, P; Sliwa, M; McGonegle, D; Wehrenberg, C; Bolme, C

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: American Physical Society
• Journal: Physical Review Letters
• Volume: 123
• Issue: 24
• Article number: 245501
• Publication date: 2019-12-13
• Acceptance date: 2019-10-09
• DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.123.245501
• EISSN: 1079-7114
• ISSN: 0031-9007