Stability of half quantum vortex in rotating superfluid 3He-A between parallel plates

We have found the precise stability region of the half quantum vortex (HQV) for superfluid $^3$He A phase confined in parallel plates with a narrow gap under rotation. Standard Ginzburg-Landau free energy, which is well established, is solved to locate the stability region spanned by temperature $T$ and rotation speed ($/Omega$). This $/Omega$-$T$ stability region is wide enough to check it experimentally in available experimental setup. The detailed order parameter structure of HQV characterized by A$_1$ core is given to facilitate the physical reasons of its stability over other vortices or textures.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Vertical and meridional distributions of the atmospheric CO2 mixing ratio between northern midlatitudes and southern subtropics

The atmospheric CO2 mixing ratio was measured using a continuous measurement system onboard a Gulfstream-II aircraft between the northern midlatitudes and the southern subtropics during the Biomass Burning and Lightning Experiment Phase A (BIBLE A) campaign in September-October 1998. The vertical distribution Of CO2 over tropical regions was almost constant from the surface to an altitude of 13 km. CO2 enhancements from biomass burning and oceanic release were observed in the tropical boundary layer. Measurements in the upper troposphere indicate interhemispheric exchange was effectively suppressed between 2°N-7°N. Interhemispheric transport of air in the upper troposphere was suppressed effectively in this region. The CO2 mixing ratios in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres were almost constant, with an average value of about 365 parts per million (ppm) and 366 ppm, respectively. The correlation between the CO2 and NOy mixing ratios observed north of 7°N was apparently different from that obtained south of 2°N. This fact strongly supports the result that the north-south boundary in the upper troposphere during BIBLE A was located around 2°N-7°N as the boundary is not necessary a permanent feature

Half-Quantum Vortices in Thin Film of Superfluid 3^3He

Stability of a half-quantum vortex (HQV) in superfluid $^3$He has been discussed recently by Kawakami, Tsutsumi and Machida in Phys. Rev. B {\bf 79}, 092506 (2009). We further extend this work here and consider the A$_2$ phase of superfluid $^3$He confined in thin slab geometry and analyze the HQV realized in this setting. Solutions of HQV and singly quantized singular vortex are evaluated numerically by solving the Ginzburg-Landau (GL) equation and respective first critical angular velocities are obtained by employing these solutions. We show that the HQV in the A$_2$ phase is stable near the boundary between the A$_2$ and A$_1$ phases. It is found that temperature and magnetic field must be fixed first in the stable region and subsequently the angular velocity of the system should be increased from zero to a sufficiently large value to create a HQV with sufficiently large probability. A HQV does not form if the system starts with a fixed angular velocity and subsequently the temperature is lowered down to the A$_2$ phase. It is estimated that the external magnetic field with strength on the order of 1 T is required to have a sufficiently large domain in the temperature-magnetic field phase diagram to have a stable HQV.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure