Bulletin of the American Physical Society
APS March Meeting 2015
Volume 60, Number 1
Monday–Friday, March 2–6, 2015; San Antonio, Texas
Session EE2: Special Outreach Session: Helium Availability: Impact on Basic Science and Alternative Technology |
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Sponsoring Units: DCMP Chair: William Halperin, Northwestern University Room: 205 |
Monday, March 2, 2015 7:30PM - 8:00PM |
EE2.00001: The Federal Helium supply: How we got here and where we might be going Invited Speaker: Mark Elsesser Helium is a limited, non-renewable resource with large uncertainties in both supply and price. It's essential for academic researchers across the physical sciences and engineering disciplines who depend on liquid helium to perform experiments and maintain critical instruments. However, because only about three percent of helium is used for scientific research, academic users have little leverage in the helium marketplace. With the Federal Helium Reserve required to sell off its remaining supply and close its doors within the next decade, many in academia are wondering ``what's next''? I will discuss the history of the Federal Helium Reserve, including legislation that shaped its development, and possibilities going forward. Additionally, I will describe a new APS initiative where we have formed a small consortium of academic liquid helium users and are allowing the Defense Logistics Agency to represent the consortium in liquid helium contract negotiations. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, March 2, 2015 8:00PM - 8:30PM |
EE2.00002: Building a Cryogen Efficient Low Temperature Lab Invited Speaker: John Davis Over the past few years we have built a new low temperature laboratory at the University of Alberta to study quantum optomechanics and superfluids in confined geometries. With liquid helium at \$11/liter in Alberta, helium consumption was a top concern, but so was vibration for optomechanics experiments and magnet stability for ultra-low temperature experiments. I will describe the wet system we have constructed, along with our automated helium recovery and delivery system. Currently our system runs, fully loaded with a sensitive optomechanics experiment at 9 mK, with a waste of one liquid liter equivalent per day of operation - with room for improvement. This may provide a model for both new laboratories and upgrades to existing wet systems. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, March 2, 2015 8:30PM - 9:00PM |
EE2.00003: Extending cryogen-free experimental platforms into the microkelvin regime Invited Speaker: Andrew Casey and John Saunders he advent of high performance cryogen-free dilution refrigerators has had a significant impact on the availability of turn-key experimental platforms in the mK temperature regime, coupled to advantages in available experimental space and flexibility of measurement systems. A strategic objective of the European Microkelvin Platform www.emplatform.eu has been to extend available temperatures into the microkelvin regime. In collaboration with Oxford Instruments Nanoscience we have constructed a first prototype system [1], which achieved a temperature of 600 ?K, with an estimated residual heat leak of 5 nW. Temperatures were measured by SQUID-based current sensing noise thermometry. We anticipate a fully engineered system will have significantly enhanced performance. [1] A microkelvin cryogen-free experimental platform with integrated noise thermometry, G. Batey, A. Casey, M.N. Cuthbert, A.J. Matthews, J. Saunders, A. Shibahara, New Journal of Physics 15, 113034 (2013). [2] Current Sensing Noise Thermometry: A fast practical solution to low temperature measurement, Andrew Casey, Frank Arnold, Lev V. Levitin, Chris P. Lusher, John Saunders, Aya Shibahara, Harriet van der Vliet, Dietmar Drung, Thomas Schurig, Graham Batey, Michael Cuthbert, Anthony Matthews. J. Low Temp. Phys. 175, 764-775 (2014). [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, March 2, 2015 9:00PM - 9:30PM |
EE2.00004: Beating liquid helium: the technologies of cryogen-free superconducting magnets Invited Speaker: John Burgoyne Cryogen-free superconducting magnets have been available now for almost 15 years, but have only become standard commercial products in more recent years. In this review we will consider the pros and cons of ‘dry’ design including superconducting wire development and selection, thermal budgeting, and the alternative methods for achieving magnet cooling. [Preview Abstract] |
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