Time-Resolved Synchrotron X-ray Diffraction on Pulse Laser Heated Iron in Diamond Anvil Cell

The authors present time-resolved synchrotron x-ray diffraction to probe the {var_epsilon}-{delta} phase transition of iron during pulse-laser heating in a diamond anvil cell. The system utilizes a monochromatic synchrotron x-ray beam, a two-dimensional pixel array x-ray detector and a dual beam, double side laser-heating system. Multiple frames of the diffraction images are obtained in real-time every 22 ms over 500 ms of the entire pulse heating period. The results show the structural evolution of iron phases at 17 GPa, resulting in thermal expansion coefficient 1/V({Delta}V/{Delta}T){sub p} = 7.1 * 10{sup -6}/K for {var_epsilon}-Fe and 2.4 * 10{sup -5}/K for {gamma}-Fe, as well as the evidence for metastability of {gamma}-Fe at low temperatures below the {var_epsilon}-{gamma} phase boundary