Ultrafast Shock and Chemical Dynamics

DE-9's ultrafast shock and chemical dynamics effort uses traditional and novel spectroscopic and interferometric methods to study the fundamental properties of explosives and the kinetics of reaction chemistry in shocked explosives and of phase transitions in shocked materials.

Unique table-top, high-repetition-rate laser-shock generation and characterization techniques allow the team to study shock kinetics with a variety of ultrafast (femtosecond) optical probes, ranging from the ultraviolet to the mid-infrared.

Current research focuses on the following areas:

• Ultrafast dynamic ellipsometric technique development and measurements of

1. phase transitions in shocked metals,
2. high-pressure, unreacted Hugoniots in single crystalline high explosives, and
3. Hugoniots of inert polymers and liquids.

• Application of dynamic ellipsometry to gas gun dynamic experiments
• Transient electronic spectroscopy of shocked single-crystalline high explosives
• Growth of crystalline high-explosive thin films
• Two-dimensional infrared photon echo spectroscopy of high-explosives thin films
• Quantum control of optical initiation of explosives

Other team developments include complementary capabilities in static spectroscopy and thin-film growth. The static spectroscopic efforts involved angle- and polarization-dependent Fourier Transform Infrared reflectivity and two-dimensional infrared photon echo and Raman spectroscopy. Work in thin-film growth involves activities in electron beam deposition of metals and dielectrics and polymer spin coating.