From crystals to planets: dynamic strain loading and its effect on olivine plasticity

Olivine is a key mineral in rocky planets. Its plasticity plays a vital role in controlling lithospheric strength and accommodating hyper-velocity shock deformation during planetary impacts. In meteoritic materials, such as lunar or Martian meteorites, deformation occurs at both low strain (crustal processes) and high strain (impacts). However, the lack of in-situ laboratory observations creates a critical knowledge gap in interpreting the deformation features and reconstructing their parent bodies' histories. To address this, we propose the in-situ dynamic strain loading experiment on well-characterized olivine micropillars at ID03. Our study will provide valuable insights into low-temperature (~298 K) plasticity in olivine and how it accommodates excessive strain energy under different strain rates. Moreover, we expand dark-field X-ray microscopy applications to natural minerals, demonstrating its effectiveness in decoding the plastic deformation history of geological materials.