Vortex excitation in superfluid 4He: A Diffusion Monte Carlo study

TL;DR

This paper uses diffusion Monte Carlo simulations to study the properties of a vortex in two-dimensional superfluid helium-4, focusing on density, core size, and excitation energies.

Contribution

It introduces an improved phase including backflow correlations for more accurate vortex wavefunction modeling in superfluid helium-4.

Findings

Particle density and core radius are quantified.

Excitation energies are calculated.

Backflow correlations improve wavefunction accuracy.

Abstract

We present a diffusion Monte Carlo study of a single vortex in two-dimensional superfluid liquid $^4$He within the fixed node approximation. We use both the Feynman phase and an improved phase which includes backflow correlations to model the nodal surface of the vortex wavefunction. Results for the particle density, core radius and excitation energies are presented.