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Physicists Propose New Superfluid Helium-4 Wave Detector

A collaboration of US-based researchers has proposed a new type of detector that would measure sound waves caused by gravitational waves in the 0.1–1.5 kHz range. The system comprises several kilograms of superfluid helium-4 held in a cylindrical container that is coupled to microwaves in a superconductor resonator. Confinement in...

Scientists Observe Ultrafast Vortices in Superconductors

A research team has made the first direct visual observation and measurement of ultrafast vortex dynamics in superconductors. The technique used, detailed in the journal Nature Communications, could contribute to the development of novel practical applications by optimizing superconductor properties for use in electronics, according to the scientists.

What Really Happens During an LHC Collision?

The Large Hadron Collider, with its 17-mile circumference, is definitely large, but the latter fraction of its name is a little misleading. That’s because what collides in the LHC are the tiny pieces inside the hadrons, not the hadrons themselves.

Researchers Discover Evidence of Majorana Fermions

In a series of lab experiments on exotic materials, scientists from the University of California and Stanford University have discovered "firm evidence" of particles that are their own antiparticles. Physicists have been looking for such Majorna fermions since physicist Ettore Majorana predicted them in 1937. The result is currently more...

LHCb Announces a Charming New Particle

Researchers from the LHCb experiment at CERN reported the observation of a new particle from the baryon family. It contains two charm quarks and one up quark. The mass of the newly identified particle is about 3621 MeV, almost four times heavier than the most familiar baryon, the proton, a...

NIST Probes Future of Supercomputing

NIST researchers have developed an automated probe system to evaluate computer components submitted by both private sector and federal labs to the Cryogenic Computing Complexity (C3) program. C3 aims to enable a new generation of low-power superconducting supercomputers that operate at liquid helium temperatures and use ultra-fast switching of microscopic...

Latest in Defining Cryogenics

Helium-3

Helium-3 (3He) is one of the two stable isotopes of helium. The other is the much more common Helium-4 (4He). Neither of these isotopes should be confused with He II, which is the second liquid phase of 4He. He II was discussed in this column in the Spring 2010 edition...

Cryopumping

Cryopumping refers to the use of cryogenic temperatures to produce vacuum in enclosed spaces. More broadly, it can also refer to the removal of gases via cryogenic temperatures from a flow stream or enclosure without necessarily resulting in vacuum pressures. This is an important application of cryogenics and is used...

Thermal Acoustic Oscillations

Thermal Acoustic Oscillations (TAO) are a common event in cryogenic systems that can have significant adverse effects on the performance of the system. TAOs are sustained pressure oscillations that can occur in tubes containing gas, closed at one end (the warm end) that have a very large temperature gradient along...

Latest in Cryo Central

Magnets

From “Superconductivity: Present and Future Applications” by the Coalition for the Commercial Application of Superconductors. Particle physics uses accelerators to recreate the conditions of the early universe in an attempt to piece together the complex puzzle of how we got to where we are today. These huge machines are used...

Energy Storage

From “Superconductivity: Present and Future Applications” by the Coalition for the Commercial Application of Superconductors. With power lines increasingly congested and prone to instability, strategic injection of brief bursts of real power can play a crucial role in maintaining grid reliability. Small-scale Superconducting Magnetic Energy Storage (SMES) systems, based on...

Astronomy

ASTRONOMY IN SPACE by Peter V. Mason, retired, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and Visiting Associate, California Institute of Technology. Pmason@alumni.caltech.edu In thinking about the reasons to perform astronomy in space, we first consider the effect of the earth’s atmosphere. On a scale of decreasing energy, gamma rays, cosmic rays, X-rays and...

Cryocoolers

What is a Cryocooler? A mechanism that can extract heat from an object (cooler) and by doing so draw its temperature down below approximately 150 Kelvin (cryo). — (Courtesy Dr. Willy Gully) What is the difference between a Cryocooler and a Cryostat? A cryostat is any device designed to maintain...

Latest in Ask the Experts

An Issue of Pressure and Flow Rate in a Supply Tank

Please help solve this problem: A supply tank requires a vaporizer to generate sufficient pressure to pump stored fluid up into a vehicle or tank. The available head is limited as the tank level falls and it is important to minimize the system pressure drop to maintain the desired flow...

Using MLI on VJ Line Joints or Cryo Storage Tanks

When installing Multi Layer Insulation (MLI) blankets on VJ line joints or cryo storage tanks should they be wrapped and tied down tight or loose? These are usually pre-cut to size. Also should they have an access hole at the point of where the molecular sieve is installed to help...

Separated layers of ice over a pipe

I want to know that why there are different layers of ice over a pipe carrying a cryogenic fluid, each layer separated with clear marks / lines? What do these layers signify?

Using nitrogen as a cryogen

Is it possible to achieve -200˚C using nitrogen as a cryogen?

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