Atomic theory of the lambda transition in helium
- Creators
- Feynman, R. P.
Abstract
It is shown from first principles that, in spite of the large interatomic forces, liquid He4 should exhibit a transition analogous to the transition in an ideal Bose-Einstein gas. The exact partition function is written as an integral over trajectories, using the space-time approach to quantum mechanics. It is next argued that the motion of one atom through the others is not opposed by a potential barrier because the others may move out of the way. This just increases the effective inertia of the moving atom. This permits a simpler form to be written for the partition function. A rough analysis of this form shows the existence of a transition, but of the third order. It is possible that a more complete analysis would show that the transition implied by the simplified partition function is actually like the experimental one.
Additional Information
©1953 The American Physical Society. Received 15 May 1953. The author appreciates conversations with Edward Kerner and with M. Kac, as a result of which he became interested in the problem. He also is grateful for discussions with E. Wigner, H. Bethe, and R. F. Christy.Files
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Additional details
- Eprint ID
- 3537
- Resolver ID
- CaltechAUTHORS:FEYpr53b
- Created
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2006-06-13Created from EPrint's datestamp field
- Updated
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2021-11-08Created from EPrint's last_modified field