Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Viscoelasticity of Xenon Near the Critical Point

Published

Author(s)

Robert F. Berg, Michael R. Moldover, G A. Zimmerli

Abstract

Using a novel, overdamped, oscillator flown aboard the Space Shuttle, we measured the viscosity of xenon near the liquid-vapor critical point in the frequency range 2 Hz [less than or equal to} f {less than or equal to} 12 Hz. The measured viscosity divergence is characterized by the exponent zΗ = 0.0690 ± 0.0006, in agreement with the value zΗ = 0.067 + 0.002 calculated from a two-loop perturbation expansion. Viscoelastic behavior was evident when t = (T - Tc)/Tc-5 and dominant when t -6, further from Tc than predicted. Viscoelastic behavior scales as Afτ where τ is the fluctuation-decay time. The measured value of A is 2.0 + 0.3 times the result of a one-loop calculation. (Uncertainties stated are one standard uncertainty.)
Citation
Physical Review Letters
Volume
82

Keywords

critical exponents, critical point, transport properties, viscoelasticity, viscosity, xenon

Citation

Berg, R. , Moldover, M. and Zimmerli, G. (1999), Viscoelasticity of Xenon Near the Critical Point, Physical Review Letters, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=831516 (Accessed May 4, 2024)
Created February 1, 1999, Updated February 17, 2017