Skip to main content
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

The observation and measurement of quantized circulation in superfluid [sup 3]He

Thesis/Dissertation ·
OSTI ID:7295804
Of the three known superfluids, ([sup 4]He, superconducting electrons, and [sup 3]He), the first two are known to be described by a macroscopic wavefunction. As a direct consequence, these systems display quantisation of circulation. It has long been assumed that superfluid [sup 3]He-B is also described by a macroscopic wavefunction and should also exhibit quantisation of circulation. This thesis describes the first measurements showing that circulation is quantised in superfluid [sup 3]He-B and showing that the quantum of circulation is h/2m[sub 3] where h is Plancks constant and m[sub 3] is the mass of a [sup 3]He atom. This experiment confirms that superfluid [sup 3]He is a Cooper paired superfluid described by a macroscopic wavefunction.
Research Organization:
California Univ., Berkeley, CA (United States)
OSTI ID:
7295804
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

Similar Records

Observation of quantized circulation in superfluid sup 3 He- B
Journal Article · Sun Jan 20 23:00:00 EST 1991 · Physical Review Letters; (USA) · OSTI ID:6202963

Investigation of quantized circulation in superfluid [sup 3]He-B
Journal Article · Tue Jun 01 00:00:00 EDT 1993 · Journal of Low Temperature Physics; (United States) · OSTI ID:6128999

Superfluid sup 3 He in confined geometries
Thesis/Dissertation · Sat Dec 31 23:00:00 EST 1988 · OSTI ID:6046114