New Phases of Superfluid $^3$He Confined in Aerogels

TL;DR

This paper explores the emergence of new superfluid phases of liquid helium-3 confined in silica aerogels, highlighting how disorder and confinement influence quantum liquid properties and phase behavior.

Contribution

It reports on the discovery and analysis of novel superfluid phases arising from disorder and confinement effects in helium-3 within aerogels, expanding understanding of quantum fluids under complex conditions.

Findings

Identification of new superfluid phases

Influence of disorder and confinement on phase stability

Insights into symmetry-breaking mechanisms

Abstract

Liquid $^3$He confined in low-density, highly porous random solids such as silica aerogel provides tuneable systems to study the effects of disorder and confinement on the properties of a quantum liquid. New superfluid phases result from the interplay between disorder, confinement and complex symmetry-breaking. An extended bibliography is appended. An edited and abbreviated version of this article appeared in Physics Today 71, 11, 30 (2018).