Purdue postdoctoral researcher Mahavir Singh and professor Vikas Tomar had their work named a Featured Article in the September issue of the Journal of Applied Physics. The article, says Singh, is the result of “a fascinating journey into understanding how materials respond when a shock wave passes through them.”

Crystals of sucrose, or table sugar, were studied very precisely while being placed under high pressure. Researchers looked for changes in their molecular structure and corresponding changes in the mechanical properties. They captured detailed shock wave propagation and observed multiple failure modes of these crystals.

“We were able to create a complete spatiotemporal picture of how shock waves travel, deform, and even cause phase transitions inside a material. This is a step forward in visualizing what happens inside solids under extreme conditions — something that’s key to materials used in defense, aerospace, and energy applications,” Singh says.

The featured article is titled, “Measurement of elastic–plastic shock propagation and phase transition using multi-point time-gated Raman spectroscopy.”

Tomar says this accolade is a significant achievement for Singh, the lead author on the article. “Only a small fraction of articles get the status of a featured article on JAP. It’s a premier journal in condensed matter physics.”