Chapter 3 The 1960s: Explosive Growth

The 1960s witnessed phenomenal growth of shock wave capabilities at Sandia. Along with rapidly evolving techniques for producing precisely controlled loading at ever-increasing shock pressures, pivotal improvements in precision diagnostics were occurring at a record rate. The goal was to probe the detailed structure of shock waves to understand specific aspects of dynamic material response, such as the ubiquitous two-wave structure observed in materials that exhibit both elastic and plastic response under shock loading. This information was needed for the new material models being developed. It was important, as well, to apply this new technology to the pressing requirements of the nation’s defense community. In particular, it was necessary to understand the stress response of materials in nuclear environments, such as the stress wave response of materials subjected to pulsed radiation sources, so that appropriate experimental techniques and material models could be developed to simulate effects on weapon components and systems.