Advances in high-pressure mineral physics: from the deep mantle to the core

Abstract

Mineral physics studies provide basic information on physical, chemical, thermodynamic and transport properties of constituents of the Earth’s interior. This information, combined with other geophysical observations, helps constrain the structure and dynamics of the Earth. This Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors special issue is a collection of the experimental, computational and theoretical research and review papers relating to recent “Advances in Mineral Physics: from the Deep Mantle to the Core” and written by some of theworld’s leading scientists in this field. This special issue is a proceedings volume of the 7th High Pressure Mineral Physics Seminar (HPMPS-7) held on May 8–12, 2007 at Matsushima, Japan. The High Pressure Mineral Physics Seminar series was established in 1976 by scientists mainly fromthe United States and Japan. Since then,meetings have been organized approximately every 4–5 years. HPMPS-7was the second suchmeeting attended by scientists from the United States, Japan, and Europe. An important activity of this meeting series is the publishing of proceedings that, because of the wide scope and high level of the contributions, serve as essential reviews of the scientific and technical progress in the field of high-pressure mineral physics. Previous volumes were published by American Geophysical Union, in 1987, 1992 and 1998, as Geophysical Monographs (volumes 39, 67 and 101, respectively) and in 2003 as a special issue of Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors.