Nuclear magnetic relaxation of 3He in contact with an aerogel above the Fermi temperature

Abstract

The spin kinetics of 3He in an aerogel has been studied above the Fermi temperature. The magnetic relaxation times T 1 and T 2 of adsorbed, gaseous, and liquid 3He in a 95% silica aerogel at a temperature of 1.5 K have been determined as functions of frequency by means of pulse nuclear magnetic resonance. It has been found that the time T 1 is linear in frequency in all three cases, whereas T 2 is independent of frequency. To explain the observed behavior of the longitudinal relaxation rate, a theoretical model of relaxation in the adsorbed layer of 3He taking into account the filamentary structure of the aerogel is proposed. © 2008 Pleiades Publishing, Ltd.