Gold reveals new structure after being compressed to 10 million times Earth’s atmospheric pressure

The study, led by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in collaboration with partner institutions, has produced the most detailed view yet of gold’s behavior under extreme compression, resolving long-standing inconsistencies in its structural properties, according to Interesting Engineering.

The breakthrough refines the role of the precious metal as a reference material in high-pressure science and enhances understanding of its stability under extreme conditions.

Gold bars are stacked in the safe deposit boxes room of the Pro Aurum gold house in Munich, Germany, Jan. 10, 2025. Photo by Reuters

Using precisely tailored laser pulses, researchers rapidly compressed gold samples while keeping temperatures lower than in typical high-pressure experiments, allowing the metal to remain in a solid state. They then used X-ray diffraction to capture atomic-scale snapshots within a billionth of a second.

LLNL scientist and study author Amy Coleman said such experiments have only recently become possible thanks to advanced systems at the National Ignition Facility, where the research was conducted.

She added that the findings "extend structural measurements of gold into the terapascal regime and highlight the need for temperature diagnostics to refine phase boundaries."

Gold is widely used as a pressure calibrant because it is chemically stable and easily detectable by X-ray analysis. While its behavior at lower pressures is well understood, discrepancies at higher pressures have affected the accuracy of related studies.

Coleman said that knowing precisely how gold behaves under such extreme conditions ensures that all experiments using it as a calibrant, from studying planetary interiors to designing new materials, are based on a validated understanding.

The findings provide a stronger foundation for future high-pressure research, boosting confidence in experiments exploring planetary cores and high-energy physics.