$^3$He Spin Pump

The superfluid component of $^3$He A$_1$ phase is spin-polarized. The process of forcing the superfluid component through a spin filtering structure, in a manner of mechano-magnetic effect, can be used to increase the spin polarization beyond the equilibrium under a given applied magnetic field. We have constructed a test cell in which a glass capillary array acts as the spin (and entropy) filter and an electrostatically actuated diaphragm forces the superfluid flow through it. Preliminary results show that a maximum \underline{relative} increase of polarization by 50 \% could be achieved. The maximum increase in polarization appears to be limited by the critical superfluid flow through the channels in the glass capillary array. The dependence of the observed effects on temperature, pressure and magnetic field will be presented.