Supersolids: what and where are they ?

Abstract

The ongoing experimental and theoretical effort aimed at understanding non-classical rotational inertia in solid helium, has sparked renewed interest in the supersolid phase of matter, its microscopic origin and character, and its experimental detection. The purpose of this colloquium is a) to provide a general theoretical framework for the phenomenon of supersolidity and b) to review some of the experimental evidence for solid Helium-four, and discuss its possible interpretation in terms of physical effects underlain by extended defects (such as dislocations). We provide quantitative support to our theoretical scenarios by means of first principle numerical simulations. We also discuss alternate avenues for the observation of the supersolid phase, not involving helium but rather assemblies of ultracold atoms.