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Oxford Instruments announces winner of 2013 Nicholas Kurti European Science Prize

Dr. Lapo Bogani from the Universität Stuttgart has been awarded the 2013 Nicholas Kurti European Science Prize. This prestigious award is sponsored by Oxford Instruments, a leading provider of high technology tools and systems for industry and research.

Physicists build world’s first ‘magnetic hose’ for transmitting magnetic fields

One of the more important properties of electromagnetic waves is that they can be transmitted over almost unlimited distance. However, the same cannot be said of magnetic fields. "The impact of magnetism in science is limited by an apparently insurmountable restriction: magnetic fields rapidly decay with the distance from the...

GE researcher receives 200th US patent

GE Global Research, the technology development arm of the General Electric Co., is honored to announce that Dr. E. Trifon Laskaris, Chief Engineer and pioneer in imaging technologies, has been awarded his 200th U.S. patent—a milestone previously reached by only one other GE research lab employee, Thomas Edison.

Chart Industries wins $45m+ LNG equipment contract

Chart Industries, Inc., an independent global manufacturer of highly engineered equipment used in the production, distribution, storage and end-use of hydrocarbon and industrial gases, has announced that its Distribution & Storage (D&S) business in China has been awarded a new contract to provide liquefied natural gas (LNG) fueling stations, self-contained...

US House passes bill to head off massive helium shortage

On April 26, the US House of Representatives passed a bill by a vote of 394 to 1 that would head off a critical shortage of helium that is sure to strike in October if Congress does nothing. That news should come as a relief to the thousands of scientists...

Herschel closes its eyes on the universe

ESA’s Herschel space observatory has exhausted its supply of liquid helium coolant, ending more than three years of pioneering observations of the cool Universe.

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

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