Fig. 5: Evolution of deformation during dynamic shock loading.
Molecular dynamics shock columns demonstrating the deformation and restoration of the BCC lattice as a shockwave moves through (left-to-right) at 800 m/s. a-d Each row depicts a single simulation at different snapshots. Each composition is representative of typical alloy compositions belonging to each of the Pareto regions highlighted in Fig. 4 (Designated according to the same a-d naming convention). The three snapshots (in order from left-to-right) depict the time evolution of simulation cell, and show evolution of deformed structure during the transient shock event. Snapshots at t1 and t2 show the initial deformation caused by the compressive shockwave front, and initial deformation evolution as the lattice is decompressing. Snapshot tf shows the deformation remaining when length of the shocked simulation cell has returned to its initial length from the start of the simulation, and is shown first with all atoms visible, and then again with all (grey colored) BCC atoms removed. e Hydrostatic pressure plots, where the x axis is aligned with the x position (visually) of simulation cells, indicate where the front shock wave is located within the cell and in which direction it is traveling. Note how the pressures in the third snapshot tf fall appreciably close to zero just as the simulation cell is returning to its un-strained length, indicating that shockwave is momentarily absent from the cell.
