About Us
Shock and Detonation Physics

DE-9 provides the knowledge base in dynamic and static response of relevant inert and energetic materials for Los Alamos National Laboratory's Nuclear Weapons Program and other critical national security areas.

Shock physics efforts provide the capabilities to perform experimental and theoretical investigations of the behavior of a wide variety of materials at high pressures and at time scales ranging from nanoseconds to hours, using a broad suite of tools and techniques to determine multi-phase equation-of-state and constitutive properties.

Detonation physics capabilities include characterizing shock properties and initiation and detonation performance of weapon explosives; investigating (experimentally) the chemical and physical processes that drive the hydrodynamics of explosives and reacting systems; developing theoretical models that predict the hydrodynamics of reactive flow; characterizing shock and reaction properties of polymeric weapon components; and developing improved diagnostic techniques for measurements in shock experiments and reactive flows.