Details of Grant 

EPSRC Reference:	GR/S27559/01
Title:	Characterisation of Fractal Materials with an Adsorbed Superfluid Film
Principal Investigator:	Golov, Professor A
Other Investigators:	Vassilicos, Professor JC
Researcher Co-Investigators:
Project Partners:	STFC Laboratories (Grouped) University of Delaware
Department:	Physics and Astronomy
Organisation:	University of Manchester, The
Scheme:	Standard Research (Pre-FEC)
Starts:	04 May 2004	Ends:	03 August 2007	Value (£):	287,808
EPSRC Research Topic Classifications:	Quantum Fluids & Solids
EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications:	No relevance to Underpinning Sectors
Related Grants:
Panel History:
Summary on Grant Application Form
The proposal is to combine the expertise of the Manchester (experiments with superfluid helium on fractal substrates) and Imperial (theory of fluid d! fractal environment and superfluids) groups to develop the measurements of the tortuosity of superfluid film on f rectal porous materials into a new p( technique for characterisation of these materials. The programme will rely on the deposition of different amounts of superfluid helium on an aerogel the measurements of the tortuosity of the helium film with the use of a torsional oscillator. This will assess the interconnectivity of the material as wel spectral dimension. These properties cannot be measured by the currently standard techniques such as adsorption isotherms (AI) or small-angle sc The experimental studies of the dependence of the tortuosity and dissipation on helium coverage will be conducted for a wide range of aerogels with between 90% and 99.5% in the temperature range 0.4 - 2.2 K. Further studies of surface fractals and non-fractal porous media by this technique wi for comparison. A theoretical model to connect the microscopic structure of fractal materials with the observed tortuosity of adsorbed films will be de If the programme is successful, the commercial realisation of the technique should be possible as a relatively straightforward modification of the star method of the characterisation of the surface area of porous materials, but with a much mor
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Further Information:
Organisation Website:	http://www.man.ac.uk