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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 307 records · Page 17
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2026

Phase diagram and spectroscopic signatures of a supersolid in the quantum ising magnet K 2 Co(SeO 3 ) 2

Supersolid phases are quantum-entangled states of matter exhibiting the dual characteristics of superfluidity and solidity. Theory predicts that hard-core bosons on a triangular lattice can form such phases at half filling and near complete filling. Leveraging an exact mapping between bosons and spin-$\frac{1}{2}$ degrees of freedom, here we show that these phases are realized in the triangular-lattice antiferromagnet K 2 Co(SeO 3 ) 2 . At zero field, neutron diffraction reveals the development of quasi-two-dimensional $\sqrt3$ x $\sqrt3$ magnetic order with Z 3 translational symmetry breaking (solidity), though with reduced amplitude indicating strong quantum fluctuations. These fluctuations manifest as equidistant bands of continuum neutron scattering, where the lowest-energy mode is gapless at K ($\frac{1}{3}$ $\frac{1}{3}$), consistent with broken U(1) spin rotational symmetry (superfluidity). For c-axis-oriented magnetic fields near saturation, we find a second phase consistent with a high-field supersolid. These two supersolids are separated by a pronounced 1/3 magnetization plateau phase that supports coherent spin waves, from which we determine the underlying spin Hamiltonian.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2024

Neural-network quantum states for ultra-cold Fermi gases

Abstract Ultra-cold Fermi gases exhibit a rich array of quantum mechanical properties, including the transition from a fermionic superfluid Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) state to a bosonic superfluid Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC). While these properties can be precisely probed experimentally, accurately describing them poses significant theoretical challenges due to strong pairing correlations and the non-perturbative nature of particle interactions. In this work, we introduce a Pfaffian-Jastrow neural-network quantum state featuring a message-passing architecture to efficiently capture pairing and backflow correlations. We benchmark our approach on existing Slater-Jastrow frameworks and state-of-the-art diffusion Monte Carlo methods, demonstrating a performance advantage and the scalability of our scheme. We show that transfer learning stabilizes the training process in the presence of strong, short-ranged interactions, and allows for an effective exploration of the BCS-BEC crossover region. Our findings highlight the potential of neural-network quantum states as a promising strategy for investigating ultra-cold Fermi gases.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2016

The rate of quasiparticle recombination probes the onset of coherence in cuprate superconductors

In the underdoped copper-oxides, high-temperature superconductivity condenses from a nonconventional metallic ”pseudogap” phase that exhibits a variety of non-Fermi liquid properties. Recently, it has become clear that a charge density wave (CDW) phase exists within the pseudogap regime. This CDW coexists and competes with superconductivity (SC) below the transition temperature T c , suggesting that these two orders are intimately related. Here we show that the condensation of the superfluid from this unconventional precursor is reflected in deviations from the predictions of BSC theory regarding the recombination rate of quasiparticles. We report a detailed investigation of the quasiparticle (QP) recombination lifetime, τ qp , as a function of temperature and magnetic field in underdoped HgBa 2 CuO 4+δ (Hg-1201) and YBa 2 Cu 3 O 6+x (YBCO) single crystals by ultrafast time-resolved reflectivity. We find that τ qp (T) exhibits a local maximum in a small temperature window near T c that is prominent in underdoped samples with coexisting charge order and vanishes with application of a small magnetic field. We explain this unusual, non-BCS behavior by positing that T c marks a transition from phase-fluctuating SC/CDW composite order above to a SC/CDW condensate below. Lastly, our results suggest that the superfluid in underdoped cuprates is a condensate of coherently-mixed particle-particle and particle-hole pairs.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2014

Upgrade of the cryogenic CERN RF test facility

With the large number of superconducting radiofrequency (RF) cryomodules to be tested for the former LEP and the present LHC accelerator a RF test facility was erected early in the 1990’s in the largest cryogenic test facility at CERN located at Point 18. This facility consisted of four vertical test stands for single cavities and originally one and then two horizontal test benches for RF cryomodules operating at 4.5 K in saturated helium. CERN is presently working on the upgrade of its accelerator infrastructure, which requires new superconducting cavities operating below 2 K in saturated superfluid helium. Consequently, the RF test facility has been renewed in order to allow efficient cavity and cryomodule tests in superfluid helium and to improve its thermal performances. The new RF test facility is described and its performances are presented.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Viscosity of liquid {sup 4}He and quantum of circulation: Are they related?

In the vicinity of the superfluid transition in liquid {sup 4}He, we explore the relation between two apparently unrelated physical quantities—the kinematic viscosity, ν, in the normal state and the quantum of circulation, κ, in the superfluid state. The model developed here leads to the simple relationship ν ≈ κ/6, and links the classical and quantum flow properties of liquid {sup 4}He. We critically examine available data relevant to this relation and find that the prediction holds well at the saturated vapor pressure. Additionally, we predict the kinematic viscosity for liquid {sup 4}He along the λ-line at negative pressures.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2014

Dry demagnetization cryostat for sub-millikelvin helium experiments: Refrigeration and thermometry

We demonstrate successful “dry” refrigeration of quantum fluids down to T = 0.16 mK by using copper nuclear demagnetization stage that is pre-cooled by a pulse-tube-based dilution refrigerator. This type of refrigeration delivers a flexible and simple sub-mK solution to a variety of needs including experiments with superfluid {sup 3}He. Our central design principle was to eliminate relative vibrations between the high-field magnet and the nuclear refrigeration stage, which resulted in the minimum heat leak of Q = 4.4 nW obtained in field of 35 mT. For thermometry, we employed a quartz tuning fork immersed into liquid {sup 3}He. We show that the fork oscillator can be considered as self-calibrating in superfluid {sup 3}He at the crossover point from hydrodynamic into ballistic quasiparticle regime.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2014

Transport of an interacting Bose gas in 1D disordered lattices

We use ultracold atoms in a quasiperiodic lattice to study two outstanding problems in the physics of disordered systems: a) the anomalous diffusion of a wavepacket in the presence of disorder, interactions and noise; b) the transport of a disordered superfluid. a) Our results show that the subdiffusion, observed when interaction alone is present, can be modelled with a nonlinear diffusion equation and the peculiar shape of the expanding density profiles can be connected to the microscopic nonlinear diffusion coefficients. Also when noise alone is present we can describe the observed normal diffusion dynamics by existing microscopic models. In the unexplored regime in which noise and interaction are combined, instead, we observe an anomalous diffusion, that we model with a generalized diffusion equation, where noise- and interaction-induced contributions add each other. b) We find that an instability appearing at relatively large momenta can be employed to locate the fluid-insulator crossover driven by disorder. By investigating the momentum-dependent transport, we observe a sharp crossover from a weakly dissipative regime to a strongly unstable one at a disorder-dependent critical momentum. The set of critical disorder and interaction strengths for which such critical momentum vanishes, can be identified with the separation between a fluid regime and an insulating one and can be related to the predicted zero-temperature superfluid-Bose glass transition.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

A brief note on the magnecule order parameter upgrade hypothesis

In this short remark, we report on recent hypothetical work that aims to equip Santilli’s magnecule model with topological deformation order parameters (OP) of fractional statistics to define a preliminary set of wavepacket wavefunctions for the electron toroidal polarizations. The primary objective is to increase the representational precision and predictive accuracy of the magnecule model by exemplifying the fluidic characteristics for direct industrial application. In particular, the OPs are deployed to encode the spontaneous superfluidic gauge symmetry breaking (which may be restored at the iso-topic level) and correlated with Leggett’s superfluid B phases to establish a long range constraint for the wavefunctions. These new, developing, theoretical results may be significant because the OP configuration arms us with an extra degree of freedom for encoding a magnecule’s states and transitions, which may reveal further insight into the underlying physical mechanisms and features associated with these state-of-the-art magnecular bonds.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Translation of waves along quantum vortex filaments in the low-temperature two-dimensional local induction approximation

In a recent paper, we give a study of the purely rotational motion of general stationary states in the two-dimensional local induction approximation (2D-LIA) governing superfluid turbulence in the low-temperature limit [B. Svistunov, “Superfluid turbulence in the low-temperature limit,” Phys. Rev. B 52, 3647 (1995)]. Such results demonstrated that variety of stationary configurations are possible from vortex filaments exhibiting purely rotational motion in addition to commonly discussed configurations such as helical or planar states. However, the filaments (or, more properly, waves along these filaments) can also exhibit translational motion along the axis of orientation. In contrast to the study on vortex configurations for purely rotational stationary states, the present paper considers non-stationary states which exhibit a combination of rotation and translational motions. These solutions can essentially be described as waves or disturbances which ride along straight vortex filament lines. As expected from our previous work, there are a number of types of structures that can be obtained under the 2D-LIA. We focus on non-stationary states, as stationary states exhibiting translation will essentially take the form of solutions studied in [R. A. Van Gorder, “General rotating quantum vortex filaments in the low-temperature Svistunov model of the local induction approximation,” Phys. Fluids 26, 065105 (2014)], with the difference being translation along the reference axis, so that qualitative appearance of the solution geometry will be the same (even if there are quantitative differences). We discuss a wide variety of general properties of these non-stationary solutions and derive cases in which they reduce to known stationary states. We obtain various routes to Kelvin waves along vortex filaments and demonstrate that if the phase and amplitude of a disturbance both propagate with the same wave speed, then Kelvin waves will result. We also consider the self-similar solutions to the model and demonstrate that these types of solutions can model vortex kinks that gradually smooth and radiate Kelvin waves as time increases. Such solutions qualitatively agree with what one might expect from post-reconnection events.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2013

MEASURING THE COOLING OF THE NEUTRON STAR IN CASSIOPEIA A WITH ALL CHANDRA X-RAY OBSERVATORY DETECTORS

The thermal evolution of young neutron stars (NSs) reflects the neutrino emission properties of their cores. Heinke and Ho measured a 3.6% ± 0.6% decay in the surface temperature of the Cassiopeia A (Cas A) NS between 2000 and 2009, using archival data from the Chandra X-ray Observatory ACIS-S detector in Graded mode. Page et al. and Shternin et al. attributed this decay to enhanced neutrino emission from a superfluid neutron transition in the core. Here we test this decline, combining analysis of the Cas A NS using all Chandra X-ray detectors and modes (HRC-S, HRC-I, ACIS-I, ACIS-S in Faint mode, and ACIS-S in Graded mode) and adding a 2012 May ACIS-S Graded mode observation, using the most current calibrations (CALDB 4.5.5.1). We measure the temperature changes from each detector separately and test for systematic effects due to the nearby filaments of the supernova remnant. We find a 0.92%-2.0% decay over 10 yr in the effective temperature, inferred from HRC-S data, depending on the choice of source and background extraction regions, with a best-fit decay of 1.0% ± 0.7%. In comparison, the ACIS-S Graded data indicate a temperature decay of 3.1%-5.0% over 10 yr, with a best-fit decay of 3.5% ± 0.4%. Shallower observations using the other detectors yield temperature decays of 2.6% ± 1.9% (ACIS-I), 2.1% ± 1.0% (HRC-I), and 2.1% ± 1.9% (ACIS-S Faint mode) over 10 yr. Our best estimate indicates a decline of 2.9% ± 0.5%{sub stat} ± 1.0{sub sys}% over 10 yr. The complexity of the bright and varying supernova remnant background makes a definitive interpretation of archival Cas A Chandra observations difficult. A temperature decline of 1%-3.5% over 10 yr would indicate extraordinarily fast cooling of the NS that can be regulated by superfluidity of nucleons in the stellar core.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Thermally activated post-glitch response of the neutron star inner crust and core. I. Theory

Pinning of superfluid vortices is predicted to prevail throughout much of a neutron star. Based on the idea of Alpar et al., I develop a description of the coupling between the solid and liquid components of a neutron star through thermally activated vortex slippage, and calculate the response to a spin glitch. The treatment begins with a derivation of the vortex velocity from the vorticity equations of motion. The activation energy for vortex slippage is obtained from a detailed study of the mechanics and energetics of vortex motion. I show that the 'linear creep' regime introduced by Alpar et al. and invoked in fits to post-glitch response is not realized for physically reasonable parameters, a conclusion that strongly constrains the physics of a post-glitch response through thermal activation. Moreover, a regime of 'superweak pinning', crucial to the theory of Alpar et al. and its extensions, is probably precluded by thermal fluctuations. The theory given here has a robust conclusion that can be tested by observations: for a glitch in the spin rate of magnitude Δν, pinning introduces a delay in the post-glitch response time. The delay time is t{sub d} = 7(t{sub sd}/10{sup 4} yr)((Δν/ν)/10{sup –6}) d, where t{sub sd} is the spin-down age; t{sub d} is typically weeks for the Vela pulsar and months in older pulsars, and is independent of the details of vortex pinning. Post-glitch response through thermal activation cannot occur more quickly than this timescale. Quicker components of post-glitch response, as have been observed in some pulsars, notably, the Vela pulsar, cannot be due to thermally activated vortex motion but must represent a different process, such as drag on vortices in regions where there is no pinning. I also derive the mutual friction force for a pinned superfluid at finite temperature for use in other studies of neutron star hydrodynamics.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Axion mass limit from observations of the neutron star in Cassiopeia A

Direct Chandra observations of a surface temperature of isolated neutron star in Cassiopeia A (Cas A NS) and its cooling scenario which has been recently simultaneously suggested by several scientific teams put stringent constraints on poorly known properties of the superfluid neutron star core. It was found also that the thermal energy losses from Cas A NS are approximately twice more intensive than it can be explained by the neutrino emission. We use these unique data and well-defined cooling scenario to estimate the strength of KSVZ axion interactions with neutrons. We speculate that enlarged energy losses occur owing to emission of axions from superfluid core of the neutron star. If the axion and neutrino losses are comparable we find c{sub n}{sup 2}m{sub a}{sup 2}∼ 5.7× 10{sup -6} eV{sup 2}, where m{sub a} is the axion mass, and c{sub n} is the effective Peccei-Quinn charge of the neutron. (Given the QCD uncertainties of the hadronic axion models, the dimensionless constant c{sub n} could range from -0.05 to 0.14.)

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Microscopic study of the impurity effect in the kagome superconductor La⁢(Ru 1–x ⁢Fe x ) 3 ⁢Si 2

Here, we report on the effect of magnetic impurities on the microscopic superconducting (SC) properties of the kagome-lattice superconductor La⁢(Ru 1–x Fe x ) 3 ⁢Si 2 using muon spin relaxation/rotation. A strong suppression of the superconducting critical temperature T c , the SC volume fraction, and the superfluid density was observed. We further find a correlation between the superfluid density and T c which is considered a hallmark feature of unconventional superconductivity. Most remarkably, measurements of the temperature-dependent magnetic penetration depth λ reveal a change in the low-temperature behavior from exponential saturation to a linear increase, which indicates that Fe doping introduces nodes in the superconducting gap structure at concentrations as low as x=0.015. Our results point to a rare example of unconventional superconductivity in the correlated kagome lattice and accessible tunability of the superconducting gap structure, offering new insights into the microscopic mechanisms involved in superconducting order.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2013

Phase stability in the two-dimensional anisotropic boson Hubbard Hamiltonian

The two dimensional square lattice hard-core boson Hubbard model with near neighbor interactions has a ‘checkerboard’ charge density wave insulating phase at half-filling and sufficiently large intersite repulsion. When doped, rather than forming a supersolid phase in which long range charge density wave correlations coexist with a condensation of superfluid defects, the system instead phase separates. However, it is known that there are other lattice geometries and interaction patterns for which such coexistence takes place. In this paper we explore the possibility that anisotropic hopping or anisotropic near neighbor repulsion might similarly stabilize the square lattice supersolid. Lastly, by considering the charge density wave structure factor and superfluid density for different ratios of interaction strength and hybridization in the ˆx and ˆy directions, we conclude that phase separation still occurs.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Strong enhancement of s -wave superconductivity near a quantum critical point of Ca 3 Ir 4 Sn 13

We report microscopic studies by muon spin rotation/relaxation as a function of pressure of the Ca 3 Ir 4 Sn 13 and Sr 3 Ir 4 Sn 13 system displaying superconductivity and a structural phase transition associated with the formation of a charge density wave (CDW). Our findings show a strong enhancement of the superfluid density and a dramatic increase of the pairing strength above a pressure of ≈ 1.6 GPa giving direct evidence of the presence of a quantum critical point separating a superconducting phase coexisting with CDW from a pure superconducting phase. The superconducting order parameter in both phases has the same s-wave symmetry. In spite of the conventional phonon-mediated BCS character of the weakly correlated (Ca 1-x Sr x ) 3 Ir 4 Sn 13 system the dependence of the effective superfluid density on the critical temperature puts this compound in the “Uemura” plot close to unconventional superconductors. This system exemplifies that conventional BCS superconductors in the presence of competing orders or multi-band structure can also display characteristics of unconventional superconductors.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2016

μ SR and magnetometry study of superconducting 5% Pt-doped IrTe 2

In this paper, we present magnetometry and muon spin rotation ( SR) measurements of the superconducting dichalcogenide Ir 0.95 Pt 0.05 Te 2 . From both sets of measurements we calculate the penetration depth and thence superfluid density as a function of temperature. The temperature dependence of the superfluid densities from both sets of data indicate fully gapped superconductivity that can be fit to a conventional s-wave model and yield fitting parameters consistent with a BCS weak coupling superconductor. Finally, we therefore see no evidence for exotic superconductivity in Ir 0.95 Pt 0.05 Te 2 .

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

Observation of signatures of subresolution defects in two-dimensional superconductors with a scanning SQUID

The diamagnetic susceptibility of a superconductor is directly related to its superfluid density. Mutual inductance is a highly sensitive method for characterizing thin films, however, in traditional mutual inductance measurements, the measured response is a nontrivial average over the area of the mutual inductance coils, which are typically of millimeter size. Here we measure localized, isolated features in the diamagnetic susceptibility of Nb superconducting thin films with lithographically defined through holes, δ-doped SrTiO 3 , and the two-dimensional electron system at the interface between LaAlO 3 and SrTiO 3 , using scanning superconducting quantum interference device susceptometry, with spatial resolution as fine as 0.7 μm. We show that these features can be modeled as locally suppressed superfluid density, with a single parameter that characterizes the strength of each feature. In conclusion, this method provides a systematic means of finding and quantifying submicron defects in two-dimensional superconductors.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗