$1/f$ Fluctuations in Critical Modes of Flow of Superheated Liquid

Experimental studies are performed into the variation of the shape of a jet of boiling liquid flowing out of a high-pressure vessel under conditions of high superheating. The mechanisms of bulk heterogeneous and homogeneous nucleation are identified, and the correlation between these mechanisms and critical modes of outflow is determined. The photometry of transmitted laser radiation is used to investigate the dynamics of photocurrent fluctuations. It is found that, in the case of intensive bulk boiling in a jet of superheated liquid, the fluctuation power spectrum has a low-frequency component (flicker noise) diverging as $1/f$. This effect is associated with nonequilibrium phase transitions proceeding in the system.