Publications and Press

Han, S. K., Smith, R. F., Kim, D., Wicks, J. K., Rygg, J. R., Lazicki, A., Eggert, J.H., and Duffy, T. (2021), Polymorphism of gold under laser-based ramp compression to 690 GPa, Phys. Rev. B, doi:10.1103/PhysRevB.103.184109.

Thorne, M. S., Leng, K., Pachhai, S., Rost, S., Wicks, J. K., and Nissen-Meyer, T. (2020), The Most Parsimonius Ultralow-Velocity Zone Distribution from Highly Anomalous SPdKS Waveforms, Minerals, doi:10.3390/min10030211.

Remaking a Planet One Atom at a Time – EOS (June, 2020)

“Not only are newer instruments raising the upper limit on pressure, but also they can yield more data than before from each experiment, and more quickly, too. Whereas the first laser compression facilities could fire only a few times a day, now they can test samples every few minutes.

‘Mineral physics is about to face a big data problem,’ Wicks said. ‘Not a problem, an opportunity.’ Some teams are looking ahead to how machine learning can guide experiment design not just to find the best tools to answer a question but also to prioritize which questions to ask first.”

Gorman, M.G., McGonegle, D., Tracy, S.J., Clarke, S.M., Bolme, C.A., Gleason, A.E., Ali, S.J., C.W.,Hok, Greeff, W., Heighway, P.G., Hulpach, K., Glam, B., Galteir, E., Lee, H.J., Mark, J.S., Eggert, J.H., Wicks, J.K., Smith, R.F. (2020), Recovery of a high pressure phase formed under laser driven compression, Phys. Rev. B, doi:10.1103/PhysRevB.102.024101.

Kim, D., Tracy, S.J., Smith, R. F., Gleason, A.E., Bolme, C. A., Prakapenka, V. B., Appel, K., Speziale, S., Wicks, J.K., Berryman, E. J., Han, S. K., Schoelmerich, M. O., Lee, H. J., Nagler, B., Cunningham, E. F., Akin, M. C., Asimow, P. D., Eggert, J. H., Duffy, T. S. (2020), Femtosecond X-ray Diffraction of Laser-shocked Forsterite (Mg2SiO4) to 122 GPa, J. Geophys. Res., doi:10.1029/2020JB020337.

Thorne, M. S., Pachhai, S., Leng, K., Wicks, J. K., and Nissen-Meyer, T. (2020), New Candidate Ultralow-Velocity Zone Locations from Highly Anomalous SPdKS Waveforms, Minerals, doi:10.3390/min10030211.

Fratanduono, D. E., Smith, R. F., Ali, D. G., Fernandez-Pan ̃ella, A., Zhang, S., Kraus, R.G., Coppari, F., McNaney, J. M., Marshall, M. C., Kirch, L. E., Swift, D. C., Millot, M., Wicks, J. K., and Eggert, J. H.(2020), Probing the Solid Phase of Noble Metal Copper at Terapascal ConditionsPhysical Review Letters, doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.124.015701.

Briggs, R., Gorman, M. G., Zhang, S., McGonegle, D., Coleman, A. L., Coppari, F., Morales-Silva, M. A., Smith, R. F.,Wicks, J. K., Bolme, C. A., Gleason, A. E., Cunningham, E., Lee, H. J., Nagler, B., McMahon, M. I., Eggert, J. H., and Fratanduono, D. E. (2019), Coordination changes in liquid tin under shock compression determined using in situ femtosecond x-ray diffraction, Applied Physics Letters, doi:10.1063/1.5127291.

Tracy, S. J., Smith, R. F., Wicks, J. K., Fratanduono, D. E., Gleason, A. E., Bolme, C. A., Prakapenka, V. B., Speziale, S., Appel, K., Fernandez-Pan ̃ella, A., Lee, H. J., MacKinnon, A., Tavella, F., Eggert, J. H., Duffy, T. S. (2019), In situ observation of a phase transition in silicon carbide under shock compression using pulsed x-ray diffraction, Physical Review B, doi:10.1103/PhysRevB.99.214106.

Wicks, J. K., Smith, R. F., Coppari, F., Kraus, R. G., Newman, M., Eggert, J., Collins, G., and Duffy, T. (2018), Crystal structure and equation of state of Fe-Si alloys at Super-Earth core conditions, Science Advances, doi:0.1126/sciadv.aao5864.

Want to Make a Super Earth? – The Register (April, 2018)

“The simulation lasts only for about a few billionths of a second. Scientists can build up a picture of the internal structure of the samples by seeing how the X-rays are diffracted. They found that at ultrahigh pressures, the lower-silicon alloy formed a dense hexagonal crystal structure, whilst the higher-silicon alloy created cubic crystals.

‘This atomic difference has enormous implications,’ said Wicks. ‘Knowledge of the crystal structure is the most fundamental piece of information about the material making up the interior of a planet, as all other physical and chemical properties follow from the crystal structure.'”

Smith, R. F., Fratanduono, D. E., Braun, D. G., Duffy, T. S., Wicks, J. K., Celliers, P. M., Ali, S. J., Fernandez- Pan ̃ella, Amalia, Kraus, R. G., Swift, D. C., Collins, G. W., and Eggert, J. H. (2018), Equation of state of iron under core conditions of large rocky exoplanets, Nature Astronomy, doi:10.1038/s41550-018-0437-9.

Wicks, J. K., Jackson, J. M., Sturhahn, W., and Zhang, D. Z. (2017), Sound velocity and density of magnesiowüstites: Implications for ultralow-velocity zone topography, Geophys Res. Lett., 44, doi:10.1002/2016GL071225.

Wicks, J. K., and Duffy, T. S., Crystal Structures of Lower Mantle Minerals, in Deep Earth: Physics and Chemistry of the Lower Mantle and Core, edited by H. Terasaki and R. Fischer, (Wiley, NY), 69-88, 2016.

Wicks, J. K., Jackson, J. M., Sturhahn, W., Zhuravlev, K. K., Tkachev, S., and Prakapenka, V.(2015), Thermal equation of state and stability of (Mg0.06Fe0.94)O, Phys. Earth Planet. Int., 249, 28–42, doi:10.1016/j.pepi.2015.09.003.

Jackson, J. M., Sturhahn, W., Lerche, M., Zhao, J., Toellner, T. S., Alp, E. E., Sinogeikin, S. V., Bass, J. D., Murphy,C. A., and Wicks, J. K.(2012), Melting of compressed iron by monitoring atomic dynamics, Earth. Planet. Sci. Lett.,362, 143–150, doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2012.11.048.

Chen, B., Jackson, J. M., Sturhahn, W., Zhang, D., Zhao, J.,Wicks, J. K., and Murphy, C. A. (2012), Spin crossover equation of state and sound velocities of (Mg0.65Fe0.35)O ferropericlase to 140 GPa, J. Geophys. Res, 117,B08208, doi:10.1029/2012JB009162.

Bower, D. J.,Wicks, J. K., Gurnis M., and Jackson, J. M. (2011), A geodynamic and mineral physics model of a solid-state ultralow-velocity zone, Earth. Planet. Sci. Lett., 303, 193–202, doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2010.12.035.

Wicks, J. K., Jackson, J. M., and Sturhahn, W. (2010), Very low sound velocities in iron-rich (Mg,Fe)O: Implications for the core-mantle boundary region, Geophys Res. Lett., 37, L15304, doi:10.1029/2010GL043689.