Exotic mixtures

(Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf) An international research team led by HZDR has now presented a new, very precise method of evaluating the behavior of mixtures of different elements under high pressure with the help of X-ray scattering. The results reinforce the premise that the matter in planets like Neptune and Uranus can alter dramatically: the hot hydrocarbon mixture in the interior of the ice giants can produce a kind of diamond rain.