Ultrahigh flow strength in shocked nanopolycrystalline diamond

Extreme pressures and temperatures create conditions that allow even hard and brittle materials to flow plastically. Despite extensive research, the limits of flow strength under such conditions remain uncertain, and the mechanisms driving deformation at the relevant stresses are a subject of debate. Using femtosecond in situ x-ray diffraction experiments and large-scale molecular dynamics simulations, we demonstrate that stacking fault-mediated strengthening enables shock-compressed nanopolycrystalline diamond to achieve a peak flow strength of 92 ± 3 GPa at a stress of 212 ± 6 GPa. Our findings show that extreme conditions can unlock ultrahigh strength via a complex array of competing deformation mechanisms and thermodynamic effects.

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Publication Details

Journal
Science Advances
Published
2026-09-18
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aed5546
Primary Topic
High-pressure geophysics and materials
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Ultrahigh flow strength in shocked nanopolycrystalline diamond

Toru Shinmei, Norimasa Nishiyama, Yoshinori Tange, Takuo Okuchi et al.
Science Advances
High-pressure geophysics and materials
article

Ultrahigh flow strength in shocked nanopolycrystalline diamond

Toru Shinmei, Norimasa Nishiyama, Yoshinori Tange, Takuo Okuchi, Leora E. Dresselhaus‐Marais, Keiichi Sueda, Tharun Reddy, Sophie E. Parsons, Tetsuo Irifune, Dorian Luccioni, T. Yabuuchi, Masato Ota, Norimasa Ozaki, Yifan Wang, Yuichi Inubushi, M. Kœnig, J. H. Eggert, Sara J. Irvine, Hirotaka Nakamura, Zipeng Xu, Sota Takagi, Wanghui Li, Toshimori Sekine, Kento Katagiri, Y. Umeda, Yusuke Seto, Tadashi Togashi, Anirudh Hari, Rohit Hari, Makina Yabashi, Alexis Amouretti, Kohei Miyanishi, Takeshi Matsuoka, Ryosuke Kodama, Rayen Lin, Ernest W. Cubit, Laura Madril
article en

Abstract

Extreme pressures and temperatures create conditions that allow even hard and brittle materials to flow plastically. Despite extensive research, the limits of flow strength under such conditions remain uncertain, and the mechanisms driving deformation at the relevant stresses are a subject of debate. Using femtosecond in situ x-ray diffraction experiments and large-scale molecular dynamics simulations, we demonstrate that stacking fault-mediated strengthening enables shock-compressed nanopolycrystalline diamond to achieve a peak flow strength of 92 ± 3 GPa at a stress of 212 ± 6 GPa. Our findings show that extreme conditions can unlock ultrahigh strength via a complex array of competing deformation mechanisms and thermodynamic effects.

Science AdvancesVol. 12(38)
Tokyo Institute of Technology (JP), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (SG), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (US), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR), Georgia Institute of Technology (US), Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (JP), Osaka University of Economics (JP), University of California, Los Angeles (US), Carnegie Institution for Science (US), Kyoto University (JP), Cardiovascular Institute of the South (US), Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives (FR), SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (US), Institute of High Performance Computing (SG), Osaka City University (JP), Sorbonne Université (FR), Laboratoire pour l'Utilisation des Lasers Intenses (FR), Institute for Laser Technology (JP), SPring-8 (JP), National Institute for Fusion Science (JP), Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute (JP), Life Science Institute (JP), Center for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research (CN), Ehime University (JP), Kobe University (JP), South China University of Technology (CN), Stanford University (US), The University of Osaka (JP)
Yamada Science Foundation, Genesis Research Institute, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Air Force Office of Scientific Research, National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program
Openalex Percentile: Top 34%
High-pressure geophysics and materials
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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