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A Microgravity Helium Dilution CoolerWe are developing a He-3-He-4 dilution cooler to operate in microgravity. It uses charcoal adsorption pumps and heaters for its operation; it has no moving parts. It currently operates cyclically to well below 0.1 K and we have designed a version to operate continuously. We expect that the continuous version will be able to provide the long-duration cooling that many experiments need at temperatures down to 0.040 K. More importantly, such a dilution cooler could provide the precooling that enables the use of adiabatic demagnetization techniques that can reach temperatures below 0.001 K. At temperatures below 0.002 K many fascinating microgravity experiments on superfluid He-3 become possible. Among the possibilities are: research into a superfluid He-3 gyroscope, study of the nucleation of the B-phase of superfluid He-3 when the sample is floating out of contact with walls, study of the anisotropy of the surface tension of the B-phase, and NMR experiments on tiny free-floating clusters of superfluid He-3 atoms that should model the shell structure of nuclei.
Document ID
20010045530
Acquisition Source
Ames Research Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Roach, Pat R.
(NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA United States)
Sperans, Joel
Date Acquired
August 20, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 1994
Subject Category
Space Processing
Meeting Information
Meeting: 1994 Microgravity Low-Temperature Physics Workshop
Location: Washington, DC
Country: United States
Start Date: January 19, 1994
End Date: January 21, 1994
Funding Number(s)
PROJECT: RTOP 582-04-11
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.

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