Quantized evaporation from liquid helium

We report here the process for the evaporation of He atoms from the surface of liquid 4 He. It is a particularly simple quantum process: a phonon inthe liquid with energy ħω > E B , the binding energy, propagates to the free surface where it is either reflected or gives all its energy to an atom...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nature (London) 1983-07, Vol.304 (5924), p.325-326
Main Authors: Baird, M. J, Hope, F. R, Wyatt, A. F. G
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Humanities and Social Sciences
letter
multidisciplinary
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
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Summary:We report here the process for the evaporation of He atoms from the surface of liquid 4 He. It is a particularly simple quantum process: a phonon inthe liquid with energy ħω > E B , the binding energy, propagates to the free surface where it is either reflected or gives all its energy to an atom on the surface. This energy is used to overcome the binding forces and the balance, ħω − E B , is carried away by the atom as kinetic energy.
ISSN:0028-0836
1476-4687
DOI:10.1038/304325a0