What are planets made of?  What are the properties of planetary materials and how do they change the dynamics and chemical processes?  How can the processes in deep interiors alter the surface environment and tectonics?  These are the key questions we aim to answer through laboratory experiments. 

Why is it important to understand the properties of planetary materials at a wide range of pressures and temperatures?  The properties of planetary materials allow us to understand a wide range of planetary processes, such as magnetism, volcanism, tectonics, differentiation, core formation, atmosphere formation, water (or volatile) cycle, etc.  Increases in pressure and temperature from the surface to the center of a planet fundamentally change the properties of planetary materials. 

We measure the properties of planetary materials at a wide range of pressures and temperatures using the diamond-anvil cell and multi-anvil press techniques, and apply the results for understanding the structure and evolution of planets.

At SESE, ASU, we offer exciting new projects to students and postdocs.

1. (1)Origin and nature of structures and heterogeneities in the mantle transition zone and the core-mantle boundary
   

2. (2)Evolution and dynamics in the interiors of exoplanets with a wide range of compositions through collaboration with astrophysicists, astrobiologists, and geophysicists 
   

3. (3)Roles of deep interior processes in the evolution of planetary atmosphere (Volatiles cycle)
   

4. (4)Chemical interactions in planetary interiors using the new-generation electron microscopy and nanoSIMS techniques
   

5. (5)Development of carbon-based super-hard materials
   

Contact

S.-H. Dan Shim, SHDShim at ASU dot EDU, 480-727-2876

School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University

ISTB4, bldg 75, Office: room 575, Lab: room 221

781 E Terrace Road, Tempe AZ 85287-6004