skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Generating gradient germanium nanostructures by shock-induced amorphization and crystallization

Journal Article · · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

Gradient nanostructures are attracting considerable interest due to their potential to obtain superior structural and functional properties of materials. Applying powerful laser-driven shocks (stresses of up to one-third million atmospheres, or 33 gigapascals) to germanium, we report here a complex gradient nanostructure consisting of, near the surface, nanocrystals with high density of nanotwins. Beyond there, the structure exhibits arrays of amorphous bands which are preceded by planar defects such as stacking faults generated by partial dislocations. At a lower shock stress, the surface region of the recovered target is completely amorphous. We propose that germanium undergoes amorphization above a threshold stress and that the deformation-generated heat leads to nanocrystallization. These experiments are corroborated by molecular dynamics simulations which show that supersonic partial dislocation bursts play a role in triggering the crystalline-to-amorphous transition.

Research Organization:
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Office of Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation; USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Scientific User Facilities Division
Contributing Organization:
Univ. of Rochester, NY (United States). Lab. for Laser Energetics
Grant/Contract Number:
AC05-00OR22725; 09-LR-06-118456-MEYM; NA0002930; LFR-17-449059; AC52-07NA27344; NA0002080
OSTI ID:
1377093
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1414697; OSTI ID: 1462273; OSTI ID: 1476238
Report Number(s):
DE-UCSD-NA0002080; LLNL-JRNL-741090
Journal Information:
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Journal Name: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Vol. 114 Journal Issue: 37; ISSN 0027-8424
Publisher:
National Academy of Sciences, Washington, DC (United States)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 43 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

References (39)

Pressure-induced amorphization and polyamorphism: Inorganic and biochemical systems journal April 2014
Crystal-Amorphous and Crystal-Crystal Phase Transformations via Virtual Melting journal August 2005
Shock-Produced Olivine Glass: First Observation journal July 1977
Formation of Nanotwin Networks during High-Temperature Crystallization of Amorphous Germanium journal November 2015
‘Melting ice’ I at 77 K and 10 kbar: a new method of making amorphous solids journal August 1984
A density-driven phase transition between semiconducting and metallic polyamorphs of silicon journal August 2005
Refractive index of lithium fluoride ramp compressed to 800 GPa journal June 2011
Amorphization and Conductivity of Silicon and Germanium Induced by Indentation journal May 1988
Dynamic Behavior of Materials book September 1994
Melting Temperature and Explosive Crystallization of Amorphous Silicon during Pulsed Laser Irradiation journal June 1984
Axial yield strengths and phase‐transition stresses for 〈100〉, 〈110〉, and 〈111〉 germanium journal November 1972
Ultrahigh Strength and High Electrical Conductivity in Copper journal April 2004
Dynamic creation and evolution of gradient nanostructure in single-crystal metallic microcubes journal October 2016
Electron Microscopy Study of Germanium Glass Vitrified by High Pressure Melt-Quench journal August 2008
Pressure-induced amorphization and an amorphous–amorphous transition in densified porous silicon journal November 2001
Pressure and shear-induced amorphization of silicon journal December 2015
Fast analysis of molecular dynamics trajectories with graphics processing units—Radial distribution function histogramming journal May 2011
Vitrification of a monatomic metallic liquid journal August 2007
Microstructural Observations of α-Quartz Amorphization journal January 1993
Pressure-induced amorphization of crystalline silica journal July 1988
Fast Parallel Algorithms for Short-Range Molecular Dynamics journal March 1995
Pressure-Induced Amorphization and a New High Density Amorphous Metallic Phase in Matrix-Free Ge Nanoparticles journal October 2015
Virtual melting as a new mechanism of stress relaxation under high strain rate loading journal July 2012
Scope for producing supercooled melts by a dynamic method journal September 1983
Directional amorphization of boron carbide subjected to laser shock compression journal October 2016
Empirical interatomic potential for silicon with improved elastic properties journal November 1988
Equation of state, phase stability, and amorphization of SnI 4 at high pressure and temperature journal March 2010
Visualization and analysis of atomistic simulation data with OVITO–the Open Visualization Tool journal December 2009
Formation of monatomic metallic glasses through ultrafast liquid quenching journal August 2014
Amorphization and nanocrystallization of silicon under shock compression journal January 2016
Pressure induced amorphization of materials journal January 1996
A constitutive model for metals applicable at high‐strain rate journal March 1980
Dislocations Faster than the Speed of Sound journal February 1999
New materials from high-pressure experiments journal September 2002
Development of the indirect‐drive approach to inertial confinement fusion and the target physics basis for ignition and gain journal November 1995
Rate-dependent phase transformations in nanoindented germanium journal June 2009
Melting and Polymorphism at High Pressures in Some Group IV Elements and III-V Compounds with the Diamond/Zincblende Structure journal April 1963
Crystal Structures at High Pressures of Metallic Modifications of Silicon and Germanium journal February 1963
Amorphization of hard crystalline materials by electrosprayed nanodroplet impact journal November 2014

Similar Records

Pressure and shear-induced amorphization of silicon
Journal Article · Thu Oct 22 00:00:00 EDT 2015 · Extreme Mechanics Letters · OSTI ID:1377093

Spall strength dependence on grain size and strain rate in tantalum
Journal Article · Mon Jul 23 00:00:00 EDT 2018 · Acta Materialia · OSTI ID:1377093

Shock-induced amorphization in silicon carbide
Journal Article · Mon Jul 23 00:00:00 EDT 2018 · Acta Materialia · OSTI ID:1377093