title: Strength of diamond.
abstract: The yield strength of diamond is measured under a pressure of 10 gigapascals at temperatures up to 1550 degrees C by the analysis of x-ray peak shapes on diamond diffraction lines in a powdered sample as a function of pressure and temperature. At room temperature, the diamond crystals exhibit elastic behavior with increasing pressure. Significant ductile deformation is observed only at temperatures above 1000 degrees C at this pressure. The differential yield strength of diamond decreases with temperature from 16 gigapascals at 1100 degrees C to 4 gigapascals at 1550 degrees C. Transmission electron microscopy observations on the recovered sample indicate that the dominant deformation mechanism under high pressure and temperature is crystal plasticity.
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Weidner
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: M T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Vaughan