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Science 29 February 2008:
Vol. 319. no. 5867, pp. 1207 - 1209
DOI: 10.1126/science.1155302
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Perspective

Supersolidity

M. H. W. Chan

The observation of nonclassical rotational inertia (NCRI) by the torsional oscillator in 2004 gave rise to a renaissance in the study of solid helium-4. Recent theoretical and experimental studies found evidence that disorder in the solid plays a key role in enabling superfluidity. A recent experiment found a marked increase in the shear modulus that shares the same temperature and helium-3 impurity concentration dependence as that of NCRI. This correlation indicates that the onset of superfluidity requires the pinning and stiffening of the dislocation network by helium-3.

Department of Physics, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA. E-mail: chan{at}phys.psu.edu

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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)