Seminars Archive

Simple Molecular Systems at Very High Pressure

Abstract
The fate of simple molecular systems at pressures of hundreds GPa (~10^6 atm) has recently attracted a considerable interest, particularly thanks to the combined use of third generation synchrotron sources and diamond-anvil cells. Very high pressures have dramatic consequences on the structural, electronic, and chemical properties of molecular systems, and lead to a variety of phenomena such as metallization, collapse of magnetism, polymerization, dissociation, and even full decomposition into the constituent elements. In this talk I will review recent theoretical work, based on first-principles simulations, on the long-sought metallization of hydrogen, on the magnetic collapse in oxygen, on the fate of methane, ammonia, and water in the interior of giant planets, and on the polymerization of carbon monoxide.