Vibron frequencies of solid H2 and D2 to 200 GPa and implications for the P-T phase diagram

Vibrational spectroscopy of the intramolecular stretching mode (vibron) of the hydrogen isotopes has been used for the past 20 years in different laboratories using various techniques to probe phase diagrams of this system under extreme conditions. Available vibrational spectroscopy data in hydrogen and deuterium to 200 GPa at 10-300 K are analyzed and reassessed to identify the existence of an additional molecular phase (I') to phases I, II, and III previously identified at megabar pressures. The results do not support the existence of phase I' in the pressure-temperature range studied. Previously proposed boundaries between phases I, II, and III are re-examined and updated phase diagrams of hydrogen and deuterium are proposed. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3574009]