Optical Properties of Fluid Hydrogen at the Transition to a Conducting State.

We use fast transient transmission and emission spectroscopies in the pulse laser heated diamond anvil cell to probe the energy-dependent optical properties of hydrogen at pressures of 10-150 GPa and temperatures up to 6000 K. Hydrogen is absorptive at visible to near-infrared wavelengths above a threshold temperature that decreases from 3000 K at 18 GPa to 1700 K at 110 GPa. Transmission spectra at 2400 K and 141 GPa indicate that the absorptive hydrogen is semiconducting or semimetallic in character, definitively ruling out a first-order insulator-metal transition in the studied pressure range.

Opacity and conductivity measurements in noble gases at conditions of planetary and stellar interiors.

The noble gases are elements of broad importance across science and technology and are primary constituents of planetary and stellar atmospheres, where they segregate into droplets or layers that affect the thermal, chemical, and structural evolution of their host body. We have measured the optical properties of noble gases at relevant high pressures and temperatures in the laser-heated diamond anvil cell, observing insulator-to-conductor transformations in dense helium, neon, argon, and xenon at 4,000-15,000 K and pressures of 15-52 GPa. The thermal activation and frequency dependence of conduction reveal an optical character dominated by electrons of low mobility, as in an amorphous semiconductor or poor metal, rather than free electrons as is often assumed for such wide band gap insulators at high temperatures. White dwarf stars having helium outer atmospheres cool slower and may have different color than if atmospheric opacity were controlled by free electrons. Helium rain in Jupiter and Saturn becomes conducting at conditions well correlated with its increased solubility in metallic hydrogen, whereas a deep layer of insulating neon may inhibit core erosion in Saturn.

X-ray diffraction in the pulsed laser heated diamond anvil cell.

We have developed in situ x-ray synchrotron diffraction measurements of samples heated by a pulsed laser in the diamond anvil cell at pressure up to 60 GPa. We used an electronically modulated 2-10 kHz repetition rate, 1064-1075 nm fiber laser with 1-100 µs pulse width synchronized with a gated x-ray detector (Pilatus) and time-resolved radiometric temperature measurements. This enables the time domain measurements as a function of temperature in a microsecond time scale (averaged over many events, typically more than 10,000). X-ray diffraction data, temperature measurements, and finite element calculations with realistic geometric and thermochemical parameters show that in the present experimental configuration, samples 4 µm thick can be continuously temperature monitored (up to 3000 K in our experiments) with the same level of axial and radial temperature uniformities as with continuous heating. We find that this novel technique offers a new and convenient way of fine tuning the maximum sample temperature by changing the pulse width of the laser. This delicate control, which may also prevent chemical reactivity and diffusion, enables accurate measurement of melting curves, phase changes, and thermal equations of state.