Fluid helium in a narrow pore at zero temperature

Abstract

The zero temperature adsorption isotherm of 4He in a rigid cylindrical pore with alkali metal walls is computed within finite-range density functional theory, with the radius of the tube as a parameter. It is shown that starting from narrow pores and increasing the radius, the adsorbed helium first becomes bound in a quasi-onedimensional phase, and finally condenses into a quasi-twodimensional configuration by going through an almost filling situation. The results are in agreement with recent calculations for carbon nanotubes based on thermodynamical approaches.