Theoretical and experimental investigations on the match between pulse tube cold fingers and linear compressors

The match between the cold finger and the linear compressor of the Stirling-type pulse tube cryocooler plays a vital role in optimizing the compressor efficiency and in improving the cold finger cooling performance. To reveal the match mechanism between the linear compressor and pulse tube cold finger (PTCF), detailed analyses have been made to understand the interactions between them. Based on the theoretical investigations, both of the design method of the PTCF to match the given linear compressor and a reverse method of the linear compressor to match the given PTCF have been proposed. In order to verify the validity of these theories and methods, actual PTCF and linear compressor are developed to match the existing linear compressor and PTCF, respectively. The experimental results show good agreements with the simulated ones. (paper)