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Fermilab Delivers First Cryomodule for Ultrapowerful X-ray Laser at SLAC

Scientists and engineers worldwide celebrated the delivery of a massive 40-foot-long cryomodule to SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory in January, the first of 37 units to be included in the facility’s planned Linac Coherent Light Source upgrade.

Friction Found in Superfluid Helium near Absolute Zero

Friction shouldn't appear in superfluid helium at temperatures near absolute zero, but that's just what researchers at Aalto University in Finland report observing in a new experiment. Understanding the causes and effects of the friction could pave the way for explorations into the composition of neutron stars and our universe,...

Brookhaven Brings a Hidden Superconducting State to Light

A team of scientists has detected a hidden state of electronic order in a layered material containing lanthanum, barium, copper and oxygen (LBCO). When cooled to a certain temperature and with certain concentrations of barium, LBCO is known to conduct electricity without resistance, but now there is evidence that a...

Low Energy PBT More Effective than High Energy for Killing Cancer Cells

Collaborative research led by the University of Liverpool has identified the specific cellular process that helps cancer cells repair damage resulting from proton beam therapy (PBT), determining that low energy treatments are more effective in the battle against cancer.

First APAs Delivered for ProtoDUNE Detectors

The first prototype Anode Plane Assemblies (APAs) for ProtoDUNE have arrived at CERN, where two large liquid argon detectors are under construction to test the engineering specifications for the US-based Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE). Scientists will use the APA screens to record streaks of ionization charge inside the detectors.

WSU Recreates Titan Seas for NASA Submarine Mission

NASA's Cassini spacecraft ended its exploration of Saturn in 2017, but the space agency is already planning a more immersive return mission, aiming to plunge a submarine into the seas of Titan, the largest of Saturn’s many moons. Researchers at Washington State University are working with NASA, replicating the moon's...

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

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...

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