Shock-induced phase transition of oriented pyrolytic graphite to diamond at pressures up to 15 GPa

In studies of shock-induced phase transition of ordered pyrolytic graphite to a diamond-like phase, the lowest transition onset pressure was observed at 19.6 GPa. The phase transition in that case was considered to be martensitic. In the present study ordered pyrolytic graphite with voids between particles was loaded at pressures up to 15 GPa using a planar shock wave propagating along the basal plane of the graphitic crystal structure. As a result, both diamond-like carbon and diamond were observed in the postshock sample. The phase transition of graphite to diamond was assumed to occur by the release of distortional energy stored in the graphite particles, that is, diffusional-controlled reconstructive mechanism, on the basis of the data by high resolution electron microscopy together with electron energy loss spectroscopy.