Table of contents

This review covers the results of experimental and theoretical investigations of radiative electromagnetic processes in amorphous and inhomogeneous media obtained after the monograph [1] came out. Bremsstrahlung with the inclusion of the Landau–Pomeranchuk effect, the longitudinal density effect, Ginzburg–Frank transition radiation, and other underlying effects are discussed. Also considered are radiative processes involving optical and γ-ray radiation occurring because of fluctuations of the medium parameters or other types of inhomogeneities in the passage of a uniformly moving charged particle through a medium. The review is intended for a wide circle of readers: experimenters, theorists, and senior students.

The state-of-the-art of research into processes and mechanisms of defect and track formation in materials irradiated by fast ions is reviewed. It is shown that the nature and morphology of tracks depend on the type and structure of the material and on the amount of energy density transferred to its electron subsystem. It is also shown that the relaxation of high electronic excitations dominates the track formation process. Discontinuous track formation mechanisms and those underlying the migration of atoms and the channeling of ions in tracks are discussed.

The behavioral peculiarities of a highly compressed substance in partially open thermodynamic systems is discussed. Unlike for their closed counterparts, for open systems the time factor and effective pressure differences between various parts of the system should be taken into account. This proves to be relevant to many high-pressure experiments and especially so to geophysics, where celestial bodies are not closed systems with respect to their components. To demonstrate the unusual behavior of partially open systems, results on the decomposition of the stoichiometric GeO₂ oxide under heating and pressure are presented. It is shown that under a moderate pressure of 100 kbar or less, in most cases the high entropy of the volatile component is the determining factor for the plausible decomposition reaction of compounds involving light elements, whereas at megabar pressures the ratio of specific volumes of the reaction components becomes more important. The results of the work suggest that the decomposition of compounds with volatile components at ultrahigh pressures and high temperatures might be a source of gaseous planetary atmospheres. In particular, the decomposition of Fe, Si, and Mg oxides in the Earth interior can serve as an additional geological source of oxygen beyond the familiar biogenic source. An alternative model for the formation of the Earth metal core is proposed within the framework of this hypothesis.

A brief review is given of some results of the investigations presented at the International Conference 'Phase Transitions and Related Critical and Nonlinear Phenomena in Condensed Media', held in Makhachkala under the auspices of the Institute of Physics of the RAS Dagestan Scientific Center on 11–14 September 2002. The programme of the conference was supplemented with the topics of the 5th International Seminar 'Magnetic Phase Transitions', held simultaneously and dedicated to the memory of late K P Belov.

Experimental data from various authors on the graphite melting point are reviewed and compared with the results obtained by E I Asinovskii, A V Kirillin, and A V Kostanovskii as presented in their paper 'Experimental investigation of the thermal properties of carbon at high temperatures and moderate pressures' (Usp. Fiz. Nauk. 172 931 (2002) [Phys. Usp. 45 869 (2002)]). It is shown that a considerable amount of available information about the heating of graphite by an electrical current or a laser pulse remained unaccounted for in that paper. A comparative analysis of the data indicates the 4800 – 4900-K range as the most reliable melting point estimate for graphite under pressures ranging from 0.1 to 3.0 kbar.

Quantum physics is discussed in the context of the philosophy of idealism.