Interaction between measurement time and observed Hugoniot cusp due to chemical reactions

Abstract

Abstract. Chemistry occurring on picosecond timescales can be observed through ultrafast laser shock drive experiments that measure Hugoniot data and transient absorption. The shock stress needed to induce chemical reactions on picosecond time scales is significantly larger than the stress needed to induce reactions on nanosecond time scales typical of gas gun and explosively driven plate impact experiments. This discrepancy is consistent with the explanation that increased shock stress leads to increased temperature, which drives thermally activated processes at a faster rate. While the data are qualitatively consistent with the interpretation of thermally dominated reactions, they are not a critical test of this interpretation. In this paper, we review data from several shocked liquids that illustrate a Hugoniot cusp due to volume changing reactions that occurs at higher shock stress states in picosecond experiments than in nanosecond to microsecond experiments. We also correlate the observed Hugoniot cusp states with transient absorption changes that occur due to the buildup of reaction products.