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LEGO Block Structures as a Sub-Kelvin Thermal Insulator

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LEGO Block Structures as a Sub-Kelvin Thermal Insulator. / Chawner, Joshua; Jones, Alexander; Noble, Theo et al.
In: Scientific Reports, Vol. 9, 19642 , 23.12.2019.

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Chawner J, Jones A, Noble T, Pickett G, Tsepelin V, Zmeev D. LEGO Block Structures as a Sub-Kelvin Thermal Insulator. Scientific Reports. 2019 Dec 23;9:19642 . doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-55616-7

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@article{83727327435349a3aef21743decc2f28,
title = "LEGO Block Structures as a Sub-Kelvin Thermal Insulator",
abstract = "We report measurements of the thermal conductance of a structure made from commercial Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) modules, known as LEGO{\textregistered} blocks, in the temperature range from 70 mK to 1.8 K. A power law for the sample{\textquoteright}s thermal conductivity κ = (8.7 ± 0.3) × 10−5 T 1.75±0.02 WK−1 m−1 was determined. We conclude that this ABS/void compound material provides better thermal isolation than well-known bulk insulator materials in the explored temperature range, whilst maintaining solid support. LEGO blocks represent a cheap and superlative alternative to materials such as Macor or Vespel. In our setup, <400 nW of power can heat an experimental area of 5 cm2 to over 1 K, without any significant change to the base temperature of the dilution refrigerator. This work suggests that custom-built modular materials with even better thermal performance could be readily and cheaply produced by 3D printing.",
author = "Joshua Chawner and Alexander Jones and Theo Noble and George Pickett and Viktor Tsepelin and Dmitry Zmeev",
year = "2019",
month = dec,
day = "23",
doi = "10.1038/s41598-019-55616-7",
language = "English",
volume = "9",
journal = "Scientific Reports",
issn = "2045-2322",
publisher = "Nature Publishing Group",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - LEGO Block Structures as a Sub-Kelvin Thermal Insulator

AU - Chawner, Joshua

AU - Jones, Alexander

AU - Noble, Theo

AU - Pickett, George

AU - Tsepelin, Viktor

AU - Zmeev, Dmitry

PY - 2019/12/23

Y1 - 2019/12/23

N2 - We report measurements of the thermal conductance of a structure made from commercial Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) modules, known as LEGO® blocks, in the temperature range from 70 mK to 1.8 K. A power law for the sample’s thermal conductivity κ = (8.7 ± 0.3) × 10−5 T 1.75±0.02 WK−1 m−1 was determined. We conclude that this ABS/void compound material provides better thermal isolation than well-known bulk insulator materials in the explored temperature range, whilst maintaining solid support. LEGO blocks represent a cheap and superlative alternative to materials such as Macor or Vespel. In our setup, <400 nW of power can heat an experimental area of 5 cm2 to over 1 K, without any significant change to the base temperature of the dilution refrigerator. This work suggests that custom-built modular materials with even better thermal performance could be readily and cheaply produced by 3D printing.

AB - We report measurements of the thermal conductance of a structure made from commercial Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) modules, known as LEGO® blocks, in the temperature range from 70 mK to 1.8 K. A power law for the sample’s thermal conductivity κ = (8.7 ± 0.3) × 10−5 T 1.75±0.02 WK−1 m−1 was determined. We conclude that this ABS/void compound material provides better thermal isolation than well-known bulk insulator materials in the explored temperature range, whilst maintaining solid support. LEGO blocks represent a cheap and superlative alternative to materials such as Macor or Vespel. In our setup, <400 nW of power can heat an experimental area of 5 cm2 to over 1 K, without any significant change to the base temperature of the dilution refrigerator. This work suggests that custom-built modular materials with even better thermal performance could be readily and cheaply produced by 3D printing.

U2 - 10.1038/s41598-019-55616-7

DO - 10.1038/s41598-019-55616-7

M3 - Journal article

VL - 9

JO - Scientific Reports

JF - Scientific Reports

SN - 2045-2322

M1 - 19642

ER -