Transformation mechanisms for the pressure-induced phase transition in single crystal CdS

Cadmium Sulfide is a well-studied material which undergoes a solid-solid phase transition from wurtzite to rock salt structures between 3 and 9 GPa. Here we describe the results of dynamic x-ray diffraction (XRD) experiments performed at the Dynamic Compression Sector (DCS) on single crystal CdS shocked along both the c- and a-axis. An automated machine language based regression tool, capable of identifying the lattice and orientations of the underlying structure from multicomponent experimental diffraction patterns, was used to identify orientation relations between the parent and daughter phases. The results provide unique insight into the transformation mechanisms of this solid-solid phase transition and the relationship of these mechanisms to the elastic/inelastic deformation and kinetics of the transition.