The A-B transition in superfluid helium-3 under confinement in a thin slab geometry

The influence of confinement on the topological phases of superfluid 3He is studied using the torsional pendulum method. We focus on the phase transition between the chiral A-phase and the time-reversal-invariant B-phase, motivated by the prediction of a spatiallymodulated (stripe) phase at the A-B phase boundary. We confine superfluid 3He to a single 1.08 {\mu}m thick nanofluidic cavity incorporated into a high-precision torsion pendulum, and map the phase diagram between 0.1 and 5.6 bar. We observe only small supercooling of the A-phase, in comparison to bulk or when confined in aerogel. This has a non-monotonic pressure dependence, suggesting that a new intrinsic B-phase nucleation mechanism operates under confinement, mediated by the putative stripe phase. Both the phase diagram and the relative superfluid fraction of the A and B phases, show that strong coupling is present at all pressures, with implications for the stability of the stripe phase.Comment: 6 figures, 1 table + supplemental informatio

Separation of He-3 from He-3-He-4 mixture by means of adsorption

A simple technique for purifying He-3 from a He-4 admixture is presented. The technique is based on different adsorption energies of He-3 and He-4

Purification of He-3 from a He-4 impurity using adsorption

A method for purification He-3 gas from a He-4 impurity using adsorption is described. In terms of roductivity and efficiency, this method is on a par with the convcntionally used rectification of a liquid He-3-He-4 mixture, but is considerably simpler