Magnetic phase transition in a nanonetwork of solid 3He in aerogel

Phys Rev Lett. 2010 Sep 17;105(12):125303. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.105.125303. Epub 2010 Sep 16.

Abstract

When immersed in liquid 3He, the nanometer strands of aerogel are coated with a thin layer of solid 3He, forming a network of irregular nanotubes. Owing to its high purity and weak interactions, this system is ideal for studying fundamental processes. We report the first experiments on solid 3He in aerogel at ultralow temperatures, cooled by direct adiabatic demagnetization. Simultaneous nuclear magnetic susceptibility and heat capacity measurements indicate a magnetic phase transition.