Quasi-one-dimensional 4He in nanopores

Low temperature structural and superfluid properties of 4He confined in cylindrical nanopores are theoretically investigated by means of first-principle quantum Monte Carlo (QMC) simulations. We vary the density of 4He inside the pore, as well as the pore diameter and the potential describing the interaction of each 4He atom with the pore surface. Accordingly, the 4He fluid inside the pore forms either a single channel along the axis, or a series of concentric cylindrical shells, with varying degrees of shell overlap. In the limit of pore length greatly exceeding its radius, the 4He fluid always displays markedly one-dimensional behavior, with no dimensional crossover above some specific pore radius and/or as multiple concentric shells form, in contrast to what was recently claimed by other authors [Phys. Rev. B 101, 104505 (2020)]. Indeed, the predicted robustness of one-dimensional physics suggests that this system may offer a broadly viable pathway to the experimental observation of exotic behavior of, e.g., junctions of interacting Tomonaga-Luttinger liquids, in an appropriately designed network of nanopores.

Automated summary

This study investigates the low temperature structural and superfluid properties of 4He confined in cylindrical nanopores using quantum Monte Carlo simulations. The results show that when the pore length greatly exceeds its radius, the 4He fluid displays remarkably one-dimensional behavior without dimensional crossover, contrary to recent claims by other authors. This system could potentially provide a viable pathway for the experimental observation of exotic behaviors, such as the junctions of interacting Tomonaga-Luttinger liquids, in a suitably designed network of nanopores.