Scientists crushed diamond beyond Neptune-like pressures—and solved a 20-year mystery
Extreme experiments have revealed how diamond behaves at crushing pressures beyond those inside Neptune and Uranus, resolving a decades-old conflict between theory and observation. The results could help scientists boost fusion energy output while revealing more about the exotic diamond rain hidden inside ice giant planets.
Scientists subjected a diamond to unprecedented pressures, surpassing those found at Earth's core and those at Neptune and Uranus, in a groundbreaking study. This research, conducted at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), resolved a 20-year-old mystery surrounding diamond's behavior under extreme conditions. The researchers employed laser-driven dynamic compression experiments to observe the material's properties at temperatures hotter than the sun's surface and pressures higher than Neptune and Uranus.
Their findings not only clarified two long-standing discrepancies in diamond research but also aligned experimental measurements with simulation predictions based on quantum mechanics. The study's implications extend to both scientific understanding and practical applications, such as improving inertial confinement fusion experiments and enhancing models of planetary interiors.
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