This $300,000 National Science Foundation project grant supports the development of a new sub-kelvin refrigerator using superfluid helium vortex cooling. Funded under the Engineering (47.041) program, Yale University will analyze, design, build a prototype, and benchmark a two-stage cooling system combining a superfluid vortex cooler and Joule-Thomson precooler. The system aims to achieve high-capacity cooling below 1K without using helium-3, addressing stockpile depletion issues. By leveraging superfluid helium-4's fountain pump effect, the superfluid vortex cooler requires no moving parts or external pump, offering a compact, attachable solution to various precoolers reaching below 2K. The complete closed-cycle system could provide over 1 megawatt of cooling at 0.9K, theoretically reaching 0.65K. This research also supports student training in this critical area.
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