Evidence for Vortex Rings with Multiquantum Circulation in He II

TL;DR

This paper presents evidence that multiquantum vortex rings in superfluid helium-4 can be long-lived and stable, challenging the conventional view that such vortices are short-lived and tend to split into single-quantum vortices.

Contribution

The study provides experimental and simulation evidence supporting the existence of stable, long-lived multiquantum vortex rings in superfluid helium-4, contradicting previous assumptions.

Findings

Detection of vortex events indicating multiquantum circulation

Simulation results disfavor vortex bundle explanations

Persistent particle trapping suggests stable multiquantum cores

Abstract

Quantized vortex dynamics in superfluid $^4$He (He~II) are widely regarded as well established: circulation is quantized in units of $\kappa=h/m_4$, vortices carrying more than one quantum are expected to split into singly quantized filaments, and vortex rings shrink while accelerating due to dissipation from thermal-quasiparticle scattering. Using particle tracking velocimetry with frozen deuterium tracers, we uncover rare vortex-bound particle events that disrupt this canonical picture. In a class of events exhibiting the acceleration characteristic of shrinkage driven vortex ring motion, the measured kinematics cannot be reconciled with a singly quantized ring. Instead, they require an effective circulation $n\kappa$ with $n>1$, directly challenging the standard expectation that multiquantum vortices are short lived. A more prosaic possibility is that the inferred $n\kappa$ arises from a bundle of closely spaced singly quantized rings, which could generate similar large-scale motion. However, this scenario is disfavored by vortex-filament simulations that show rapid bundle dispersion. Furthermore, the persistence of particle trapping at the observed high speeds suggests a much deeper core trapping potential, consistent only with a truly multiquantum core. Together, these results point to anomalously long-lived multiquantum rings, a striking puzzle that calls for dedicated scrutiny beyond the prevailing paradigm.