Methods of cooling matter to extremely low temperatures

In summary, the conversation discusses different ways of cooling matter, such as laser cooling and evaporative cooling. The person asking for help has an A-level in physics and is looking for information on more methods. The experts suggest using liquid nitrogen and helium for larger pieces of matter and laser cooling for small samples of trapped atoms or ions. The discussion also mentions reaching temperatures near absolute zero using dilution refrigerators and adiabatic demagnetization stages. The person asking for help also clarifies that they are mainly interested in gases and mentions the use of laser cooling for Bose-Einstein condensates. Specific details on the gas and confinement method would help with finding a suitable cooling method.
  • #1
InFlames4ever
2
0
I am trying to find out as many ways of cooling down matter as possible and information on said ways, so far I have found out a bit about laser cooling, evaporative cooling and that's about it. I'm sure there are other ways but I can't find any and the information I can find on these ways is either not in enough detail or too advanced for my level of understanding. I have an A-level in physics but no further so that would be my ability level.
Any help would be appreciated, thanks.
 
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  • #2
You have to specify more details on what "matter" you want to cool down and how far down you need to go. For larger pieces of matter, like solids, the most common form of cooling is by liquid nitrogen and liquid helium, which can get you down to 1-2 K. Further use of a dilution fridge can get you down to the milikelvin range.

For small samples of trapped atoms or ions, laser cooling (doppler cooling) works, which can be combined with resolved sideband techniques to reach few phonon number states (temperature then depends on level structure).

So, what system are you looking at, annd how cold do you need to be?
 
  • #3
Well I'm talking about ways of getting near to absolute zero, and I can't believe I didn't put that in the OP. I'm also talking about gases mainly.
 
  • #4
Hi,
I am not well sure about minimum possible experiments..but some research group in Finland did some experiments in the range of 30 mK..they obtained by mixing two different liquid helium (He I and II if i remember good..)..
 
  • #5
Rajini said:
Hi,
I am not well sure about minimum possible experiments..but some research group in Finland did some experiments in the range of 30 mK..they obtained by mixing two different liquid helium (He I and II if i remember good..)..

30 mK is the base temperature of a (bad) diliution refrigerator. Commerical diluition refrigerators can reach about 10 mK or so. Once there you can use an adiabatic degmagnetization stage to go lower, below 1mK to say a few hundered microkelvin.
Note that we are talking about cooling large chuncks of matter, several kilograms.

For gases you need laser cooling, look up experiments on Bose-Einstein condensatates.
 
  • #6
It would also help if you specified what atoms your gas consists of and how it is confined, since for laser cooling for example you are dependent on finding a closed cooling cycle that can be repeated without branching losses and similar.
 

1. How are extremely low temperatures achieved in the cooling process?

Extremely low temperatures are achieved through a process called cryogenics. This involves using specialized equipment, such as cryocoolers and refrigerators, to cool matter to temperatures close to absolute zero (-273.15°C).

2. What is the purpose of cooling matter to extremely low temperatures?

The main purpose of cooling matter to extremely low temperatures is to study the behavior of matter at such low temperatures. This can help scientists understand the fundamental properties of matter and develop new technologies, such as superconductors and quantum computers.

3. What are the different methods used to cool matter to extremely low temperatures?

There are several methods used to cool matter to extremely low temperatures, including adiabatic demagnetization, laser cooling, and evaporative cooling. Each method has its own advantages and is used for different types of materials.

4. How low can temperatures be cooled using current methods?

Using current methods, temperatures can be cooled to as low as a few nanokelvins (billionth of a degree above absolute zero). However, some experimental methods have been able to achieve temperatures as low as a few picokelvins (trillionth of a degree above absolute zero).

5. Are there any potential applications for extremely low temperature cooling?

Yes, there are many potential applications for extremely low temperature cooling. Some examples include the development of quantum computers, advanced medical imaging techniques, and more efficient energy storage systems. It also has applications in fields such as astrophysics and material science.

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