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Updated: Jul 12, 2025

Simulation of the Planetary Interior Differentiation Processes in the Laboratory
Published on: November 15, 2013
Ultrafast x-ray detection of low-spin iron in molten silicate under deep planetary interior conditions
Sang-Heon Shim1, Byeongkwan Ko1, Dimosthenis Sokaras2
1School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA.
Abstract:
The spin state of Fe can alter the key physical properties of silicate melts, affecting the early differentiation and the dynamic stability of the melts in the deep rocky planets. The low-spin state of Fe can increase the affinity of Fe for the melt over the solid phases and the electrical conductivity of melt at high pressures. However, the spin state of Fe has never been measured in dense silicate melts due to experimental challenges. We report detection of dominantly low-spin Fe in dynamically compressed olivine melt at 150 to 256 gigapascals and 3000 to 6000 kelvin using laser-driven shock wave compression combined with femtosecond x-ray diffraction and x-ray emission spectroscopy using an x-ray free electron laser. The observation of dominantly low-spin Fe supports gravitationally stable melt in the deep mantle and generation of a dynamo from the silicate melt portion of rocky planets.
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