High-pressure X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy at fourth-generation synchrotron sources

Area of Science:

• Condensed Matter Physics
• Materials Science
• Spectroscopy

Background:

• Studying atomic-scale dynamics in complex systems under extreme conditions is crucial for understanding material properties.
• Traditional methods face limitations in achieving multi-gigapascal pressures and high temperatures while maintaining measurement sensitivity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a novel experimental setup for high-pressure X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy (XPCS).
• To enable in-situ monitoring of internal material motion at the atomic scale under pressures up to the multi-gigapascal range and temperatures up to 600 K.

Main Methods:

• Combining hard X-ray XPCS with a specialized high-pressure sample environment.
• Utilizing high-flux coherent X-rays from fourth-generation synchrotrons to overcome diamond anvil cell absorption.
• Measuring the intermediate scattering function over six orders of magnitude in time (10⁻³ s to 10³ s).

Main Results:

• Demonstrated the feasibility of performing XPCS experiments in the multi-gigapascal pressure range.
• Successfully measured pressure-dependent dynamics in metallic glasses.
• Addressed challenges related to X-ray coherence, sample stability, and pressure/temperature control.

Conclusions:

• The developed high-pressure XPCS technique is a powerful tool for investigating the behavior of complex systems under extreme conditions.
• This advancement opens new avenues for exploring pressure-induced phase transitions and dynamics in materials science.
• Future research can leverage this setup to uncover fundamental insights into material properties at the atomic scale.