It has long been known that metals may be subjected momentarily to stresses for exceeding their static yield stress without suffering plastic strain. One of the simplest methods for subjecting a metal to a high stress for a short time is to form it into a cylindrical specimen and fire this at a steel target. The front part of this projectile crumples up, but the rear part is left undeformed. If the target is rigid the distance which this portion travels while it is being brought to rest may be taken as the difference between the initial length and the length of the deformed specimen after impact. Knowing the velocity of impact, a minimum possible value can be assigned to the maximum acceleration of the material, and from this a minimum value for the yield stress can be calculated. The actual yield stress is considerably greater than this minimum, and methods are given for calculating a more probable value.

The use of flat-ended projectiles for determining dynamic yield stress I. Theoretical considerations. (1948). Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series A. Mathematical and Physical Sciences, 194(1038), 289–299.