Analysis of lattice strains measured under nonhydrostatic pressure

The equations for the lattice strains produced by nonhydrostatic compression are presented for all seven crystal systems in a form convenient for analyzing x-ray diffraction data obtained by newly developed methods. These equations have been used to analyze the data on cubic (bcc alpha-Fe) and hexagonal (hcp epsilon-Fe) systems. The analysis gives information on the strain produced by the hydrostatic stress component. A new method of estimating the uniaxial stress component from diffraction data is presented. Most importantly, the present analysis provides a general method of determining single crystal elastic constants to ultrahigh pressures. (C) 1998 American Institute of Physics.