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Study Sheds Light on the Peculiar ‘Normal’ Phase of High Temperature Superconductors

In a paper published in Science this month, a research team from the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University reported on an experiment that probed the normal state of superconductors more accurately than ever before, discovering an abrupt shift in the behavior of electrons in which...

First Magnet Installed for the ALPS II Experiment at DESY

The international Any Light Particle Search (ALPS) II collaboration installed the first of 24 superconducting magnets in mid-October, marking the start of the installation of a unique particle physics experiment to look for dark matter. Located at DESY, the German research center in Hamburg, it is set to start taking...

CERN Council Appoints Fabiola Gianotti to Second Term of Office as CERN Director General

At its 195th session, the CERN Council selected Fabiola Gianotti, the organization’s director-general, for her second term of office. The appointment will be formalized at the December session of the Council, and Gianotti’s new five-year term will begin on January 1, 2021. This is the first time in CERN’s history...

Cryomech Breaks Ground on New Manufacturing Facility

Cryomech, Inc. (CSA CSM) recently broke ground on their new 76,000-square foot manufacturing facility in DeWitt NY. The custom designed building will provide space for continued growth and innovation in the cryogenics industry. Cryomech also plans to grow staff in both manufacturing and administration. According to the current build schedule,...

Fermilab, International Partners Break Ground on New Beamline for the World’s Most Advanced Neutrino Experiment

On November 14, the US Department of Energy’s Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (CSA CSM) joined with its international partners to break ground on a new beamline that will help scientists learn more about ghostly particles called neutrinos. The beamline is part of the Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility (LBNF), which will house...

Magnet Doubles Hydrogen Yield from Water Splitting

Using nothing more than a $10 magnet, José Ramón Galán-Mascarós and his researchers at the Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia (ICIQ) in Spain have doubled the hydrogen output of a water-splitting electrolyzer. If the approach can be scaled up, it has the potential to slash the costs of producing...

Latest in Defining Cryogenics

Dilution Refrigerators

Dilution refrigerators are a common technique for reaching temperatures below 1K, particularly where continuous cooling at these temperatures is required. Helium exists in two stable isotopes: 4He and 3He. Naturally occurring 3He is extremely rare, constituting less than 1 part per million of helium gas. However, 3He can be manufactured,...

Oxygen Deficiency Hazards

Oxygen Deficiency Hazards (ODH) are a significant safety issue in cryogenic facilities. ODH occurs when inert gases such as nitrogen, helium or argon displace room air and thus lower the percentage of oxygen in the space below that required for human life. OSHA defines an area as oxygen deficient if...

Kelvin Temperature Scale

The Kelvin temperature scale is the principal temperature scale used in cryogenics and science. The kelvin is also one of the seven base units in the Système International d’Unités (SI) and is the unit of thermodynamic temperature. Thermodynamic temperature is a fundamental physical quantity (like mass, length or electrical current)...

Latest in Cryo Central

Air Separation and Liquefaction

by Nils Tellier, PE, President, EPSIM Corporation (CSA CSM) nils@epsim.us All illustrations courtesy EPSIM Corporation Background History of Air Separation and Liquefaction This section builds on a rich history of methods to develop deep refrigeration and cryogenic liquefaction during the 19th Century. You are encouraged to read Cryo Central’s History...

Bose-Einstein Condensate

A Bose-Einstein condensate, first proposed in 1925 by Albert Einstein based on work done by Satyendra Nath Bose (the same Bose from whom the term boson is derived), is a super-cold state of matter in which almost all of the individual atoms have “condensed” down to the lowest possible quantum...

Cold Technology for Pest Control

While it does not reach temperatures cold enough to be called cryogenic, carbon dioxide snow is at the heart of a new way of dealing with unwanted pests. It utilizes a quick freezing process that takes advantage of the properties of carbon dioxide snow and has a number of benefits...

Cryogenic Finishing

The following 3 articles discuss the uses and procedures of various type of cryogenic finishing. 1) By Robin A. Rhodes, Cryogenic Institute of New England, Inc. rrhodes@nitrofreeze.com Cryogenic Deflashing is employed to remove undesired residual mold flash that remains on molded parts after they are removed or ejected from the...

Latest in Ask the Experts

Dry ice vs. LN2 for preserving tissue

I was wondering if anyone could provide feedback/data on whether it is best in terms of preserving tissue quality to freeze tissue in OCT using dry ice versus liquid nitrogen?

Are there lists of existing biorepositories?

We are a relatively new Biorepository that was developed as part of a large breast cancer epidemiology study, and thus far we have accumulated DNA on over 8000 women along with extensive questionnaire, mammography, and case status data. I was wondering, are there lists of existing Biorepositories with their contents?...

Heat flux value for inner vessel when vacuum insulation fails

To size a relief valve for a LN2 cryostat I have to know “worse case” boil-off rate when vacuum insulation failed and inner vessel with LN2 is in direct contact with room temperature air at 300K. So, I am looking for a heat flux value (watt/m2) to LN2 inner vessel...

Trying to design a system to store ammonia at -33°C

I am working on a project where we are trying to design a system to store ammonia at -33°C. In order to size the compressors to maintain the ammonia in the liquid state, I need to estimate the heat gained from the environment including the radiation from the sun and...

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