Cold Facts Digital – The go-to place for Cryogenics and Superconductivity

SNOLAB Confirms Positive First Year of Dark Matter Research

Researchers at the underground SNOLAB in Ontario, Canada, operate its DEAP-3600 experiment and have released results from the team's first year collecting data on dark matter, confirming that the sensitive detector is working as anticipated.

Flow of Time Reversed on Quantum Computer

An international science team reports that it has successfully returned a computer briefly to the past. Such a result suggests new paths for exploring the backward flow of time in quantum systems and also opens the possibility for quantum computer program testing and error correction. Argonne National Laboratory (CSA CSM)...

Scientists Exploring How to Make the Large Hadron Collider Safer

An international research team headed by Russia's Ural Federal University has taken on the task of increasing the reliability of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) and other complex facilities. Results from the group's experiment were recently published and include proposals for the "second-generation high-temperature superconductors at liquid nitrogen temperatures."

Scientists Chill Nanoelectronics Below a Thousandth of a Kelvin

Tiny electronic chips have been cooled to a record low temperature, dipping below a thousandth of a Kelvin during experiments conducted at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands.

IBM and University of Chicago Collaborate to Advance Quantum Computing

A new research collaboration between the University of Chicago's Enabling Practical-Scale Quantum Computing (EPiQC) project and IBM is projected to bring quantum computing closer to the present by sharing resources and training the next generation of quantum computer scientists.

Biopsy Snap Frozen within Seconds

The standard procedure for rapid freezing a biopsy taken from a patient involves the use of liquid nitrogen. Such a procedure, however, is not allowed inside operating rooms, thus causing frequent challenges and delays. But researchers at the Netherlands' University of Twente have now developed a "snap freezing" apparatus that...

Latest in Defining Cryogenics

Dewar

A dewar is a type of cryostat named after Sir James Dewar, the researcher who first developed the concept of a vacuum insulated container with silvered walls to reflect thermal radiation. Dewar was the first to liquefy hydrogen, and he created the device to store his discovery. The thermos bottle...

Stirling and Gifford-McMahon Cryocoolers

Stirling and Gifford-McMahon (GM) cryocoolers are two of the most commonly used cryocoolers in cryogenics. Both devices have a significant industrial base and operate at a wide range of temperatures and capacities. The thermodynamic cycles for both of these cryocoolers are quite similar. The Stirling cycle consists of a compressor,...

Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)

A significant commercial application of cryogenics is the liquefaction, transport and storage of natural gas. Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) is generally 95 percent methane with a few percent ethane and much lower concentrations of propane and butane. LNG liquefies at 111.6 K. Unlike many applications of cryogenics, the motivation for...

Latest in Cryo Central

History of Cryogenics

From the Fall 1999 issue of Cold Facts magazine Millennium Breakthroughs A variety of CSA members give different perspectives on the past millennium: What were the most significant breakthroughs in cryogenics during the past millennium? Prof. R.G. Scurlock, Kryos Technology, scurlock@soton.ac.uk (“Breakthrough” = way through obstacles — Oxford English Dictionary)...

Cryobiology

Andreas Sputtek Past President Society for Cryobiology sputtek@uke.uni-hamburg.de or http://www.sputtek.de/. The word cryobiology (from the Greek words “cryo” = cold, “bios” = life, and “logos” = science) literally signifies the science of life at low temperatures. In practice, this field comprises the study of any biological material or system (e.g.,...

Cryogenic Insulation

James E. Fesmire Cryogenics Test Laboratory NASA Kennedy Space Center james.e.fesmire@nasa.gov Introduction In today’s world, the use of cryogenics and low-temperature refrigeration is taking a more and more significant role. From the food industry, transportation, energy, and medical applications to the Space Shuttle, cryogenic liquids must be stored, handled, and...

Cryogenic Treatment of Materials

F.J. Diekman Controlled Thermal Processing, Inc. info@metal-wear.com Cryogenic Processing (also called cryogenic treatment, and incorrectly “cryogenic tempering”) is a process that uses cryogenic temperatures to modify materials to enhance their performance. Cryogenic Processing involves the slow reduction in temperature of the material to at least -300°F (-185°C) and holding the...

Latest in Ask the Experts