This project improves the cryogenic facilities of upper- division teaching laboratories. In these laboratories, students are given the opportunity to work with research-class instruments that they may encounter in their future careers in university, industrial, or government research laboratories. Cryogenics, an important part of the physics curriculum, it is a source of new concepts such as the macroscopic quantum states encountered in superconductivity and superfluidity. It is a region where the absence of thermal motion permits the clear recognition of many physical properties. Furthermore, it has important applications such as those associated with high-temperature superconductivity, Josephson junctions, etc. The heart of our new research standard cryogenic system is a RMC Cryosystems 4He insertable dewar. This is a low-cost all-purpose cryostat that provides a temperature range from 1.2-300K, and, with a 50 T superconducting solenoid, it becomes a very versatile piece of equipment. It has low operating costs and the fast turnaround time that is essential for the efficient running of a teaching laboratory where the students are present for limited periods.
