An introduction to the Defense Materials Science Sector (DMSS)

The next era of science-based stockpile stewardship will rely more heavily on NNSA’s predictive capabilities, and new certification tools. A capability gap remains for measurements of materials behaviors at the mesoscale. The mesoscale (10s nm – 100 microns) is the length scale at which many of the dominant mechanisms behind material properties and performance originate. This gap represents an experimental need to “see” inside materials with sufficient spatial and temporal resolution to quantitatively model and constrain the underlying physics phenomena controlling material performance. The Advanced Photon Source (APS) at Argonne National Laboratory is one of five DOE-BES light sources in the U.S. It’s energy, brilliance, micro-focused beams and bunch timing structure make it unique and ideal for dynamic experiments of interest to NNSA. A preliminary concept for a Defense Materials Science Sector (DMSS) was developed, and is proposed as a long beamline sector at the APS. The preliminary concept contains a materials science and qualification hutch (MaSQ), a large flexible hutch for dynamic drivers such as an explosive vessel firing capability, and a pulsed power driver for complex loading of samples. Other flexible dynamic drivers could be readily introduced, such as light gas guns, a Hopkinson-bar apparatus, and pulsed laser platforms. This presentation will discuss the preliminary DMSS concept and first experiments motivating x-ray and driver requirements.