Published online by Cambridge University Press: 31 January 2011
Shock compression experiments on powder mixtures of niobium metal and quartz were conducted for the pressure range of 30–40 GPa by a 25-mm single-stage propellant gun. Chemical reaction occurred above 35 GPa, and products were found to be mainly so-called “Cu3Au-type” Nb3Si, which contained a small amount of oxygen. Microtextures of the specimen were examined by scanning and transmission electron microscopy. A field-emission transmission electron microscope was used for energy-dispersive x-ray analysis of microtextures in small particles found in the SiO2 matrix, and various species with different Nb/Si ratio and oxygen content were shown to be produced through the nonequilibrium process of shock compression.