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Super-earth interiors and beyond: dynamic compression and the high pressure experimental frontier.


Nov. 26, 2019, 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
3853 Slichter

Presented By:
June Wicks
JHU

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Interpretations of terrestrial exoplanet observations requires better knowledge of matter at extreme conditions, as planetary formation and subsequent evolution is fundamentally controlled by the properties of minerals at high pressure. In this talk I will describe how we use laser-driven dynamic compression to push experimental access to unprecedented pressures and temperatures. Using laser and x-ray laser facilities around the world, we mineral physicists have an ever-expanding set of drivers and diagnostics to interrogate the properties of matter. I’ll describe some of these experiments, interrogating the phase diagram and equation of state of our favorite terrestrial building blocks, and discuss how the high pressure frontier of science will contribute to the next generation of exoplanet questions.