Coherent Structure Formation in Turbulent Thermal Superfluids

By means of numerical calculations, we show that in turbulent thermal superfluids the normal fluid induces coherent bundles of quantized line vortices in the superfluid. These filamentary structures are formed in between the normal fluid vortices, acquiring eventually comparable circulation. They are self-stretched and evolve according to self-regulating dynamics. Their spectrum mimics the normal fluid spectrum with the mutual friction force exciting the large scales and damping the small scales. Strongly interacting triads of them merge sporadically into stronger, braided vortex filaments, inducing strong fluctuations in the system's energetics. A theoretical account of the system's statistical mechanics is proposed.