Probes based on levitation principles are opening a broad range of possibilities is ultra low temperature research. Free from mechanical suspension and associated clamping losses, the levitated system enables controlled motion in ultra low temperature environments and provides a platform for investigating superfluid physics, including normal fluid drag, mutual friction, and quasiparticle emission under boundary free conditions. We describe the principles of superconductor levitation, the design and construction of a probe using a superconducting sphere, and the detection strategies that allow precise control of its dynamics. The ability to induce and measure controlled motion within a superfluid opens a pathway toward exploring new dynamical regimes and developing next generation tools for quantum fluid research.
M. Arrayás (Wed,) studied this question.