Undergraduate Physics Laboratory Research Articles

Experimental analysis of propeller thrust in an undergraduate physics laboratory

As propulsive systems are challenging for undergraduates to understand, it is essential to design experiments that can help their visualization and testing. The development of digital technology (high-speed cameras, digital tracking software, or 3D printers) facilitates the implementation of such designs. We proposed to study the thrust produced by a propeller, whose operating principles are based on the conservation of linear momentum. The study was carried out on an air track to avoid frictional forces. Several system characteristics were established, such as the propellor’s rotation speed and angle of attack and different magnitudes were determined, including the dynamic thrust and static force values. 3D CAD software was used to design the propellers for the experiments, and 3D printers to produce them.

Using a machine vision sensor for wavelength estimation by measuring an Airy disk, with didactic purposes

In this manuscript, it is presented a simple and automated educational resource with the aim of determining the wavelength of a laser source that uses the Airy disk generated by a circular aperture. It is known that there is a relationship between the diameter of the central disk and the distance between the circular aperture and the image plane. These two parameters are automatically measured by using a machine vision sensor and an ultrasonic distance sensor, respectively. This resource can be applied in graduate or undergraduate Physics and Engineering laboratories and classrooms for educational, demonstrative, or measuring purposes.

Device development with a mathematical model to study heat capacity of liquids

A simple device for studying the heat capacity of water was constructed for classroom use. It consists of a water-filled closed container with an inserted heating rod and a thermometer. Initially, the water temperature increases linearly with time but later shows a deviation from the linear trend. To explain the result, the heating rate is assumed to be proportional to the difference between the temperature of the rod and that of water. The device can also be used to measure the specific heat capacity of other common liquids. This article demonstrates a simple equipment design together with an application of calculus in an introductory undergraduate physics laboratory. It presents an opportunity for project-based learning as well as problem solving with an emphasis on mathematical model development.

Two Simple Experiments Using FFT with Digital Devices in the Introductory Physics Laboratory

We propose two experiments suited for high school and/or undergraduate physics laboratory which are aimed at the discovery of the practical meaning and utility of the FFT analysis as a mathematical and graphical instrument. They intend to discriminate different periodic signals in various situations, ranging from basic, demonstrative measurements to very complex, real-research experiments. In our proposal, inexpensive digital instruments can be used, with surprisingly accurate results.

Mixed methods study of student participation and self-efficacy in remote asynchronous undergraduate physics laboratories: contributors, lurkers, and outsiders

BackgroundWhile laboratory practices have traditionally been conducted in-person, online asynchronous laboratory learning has been growing in popularity due to increased enrollments and the recent pandemic, creating opportunities for accessibility. In remote asynchronous learning environments, students have more autonomy to choose how they participate with other students in their laboratory classes. Communities of practice and self-efficacy may provide insights into why students are making their participation choices and how they are interacting with peers in asynchronous physics laboratory courses.ResultsIn this mixed methods, explanatory sequential study, students in an introductory physics remote asynchronous laboratory (N = 272) were surveyed about their social learning perceptions and their physics laboratory self-efficacy. Three groups of students were identified based upon their self-reported participation level of communication with peers in asynchronous courses: (1) contributors, who communicated with peers via instant messaging software and posted comments; (2) lurkers, who read discussions on instant messaging software without posting comments; and (3) outsiders, who neither read nor posted comments to peer discussions. Analysis of variance with post hoc Tukey tests showed significant differences in social learning perceptions among contributors, lurkers, and outsiders, with a large effect size, and differences between contributing and lurking students’ self-efficacy, with a small effect size. Qualitative findings from open-ended survey responses indicated contributors felt the structure of the learning environment, or their feeling of connectedness with other students, facilitated their desire to contribute. Many lurkers felt they could get what they needed through vicarious learning, and many expressed their lack of confidence to post relevant, accurate comments. Outsiders felt they did not have to, did not want to, or could not connect with other students.ConclusionsWhile the classroom laboratory traditionally requires all students to participate in the learning process through active socialization with other students, students in a remote asynchronous laboratory may still gain the benefits of participation through lurking. Instructors may consider lurking in an online or remote science laboratory as a legitimate form of participation and engagement.

Coronal Heating as Determined by the Solar Flare Frequency Distribution Obtained by Aggregating Case Studies

Flare frequency distributions represent a key approach to addressing one of the largest problems in solar and stellar physics: determining the mechanism that counterintuitively heats coronae to temperatures that are orders of magnitude hotter than the corresponding photospheres. It is widely accepted that the magnetic field is responsible for the heating, but there are two competing mechanisms that could explain it: nanoflares or Alfvén waves. To date, neither can be directly observed. Nanoflares are, by definition, extremely small, but their aggregate energy release could represent a substantial heating mechanism, presuming they are sufficiently abundant. One way to test this presumption is via the flare frequency distribution, which describes how often flares of various energies occur. If the slope of the power law fitting the flare frequency distribution is above a critical threshold, α = 2 as established in prior literature, then there should be a sufficient abundance of nanoflares to explain coronal heating. We performed >600 case studies of solar flares, made possible by an unprecedented number of data analysts via three semesters of an undergraduate physics laboratory course. This allowed us to include two crucial, but nontrivial, analysis methods: preflare baseline subtraction and computation of the flare energy, which requires determining flare start and stop times. We aggregated the results of these analyses into a statistical study to determine that α = 1.63 ± 0.03. This is below the critical threshold, suggesting that Alfvén waves are an important driver of coronal heating.

An economical smoke chamber and light-sheet microscope system for experiments in fluid dynamics and electrostatics

A smoke chamber and light-sheet video microscope setup is relatively easy to construct and provides opportunities for undergraduates to participate in a variety of advanced experiments, including the demonstration of Brownian motion and the interaction of induced electrostatic dipoles in aerosol particle agglomeration. We present results of these experiments along with information to allow replication of the setup in undergraduate physics laboratories. A theoretical model of the rate of aerosol agglomeration of long dipole chains as a function of electric field agrees with experiments at field strengths up to 200 kV m−1.

A Useful Experiment for Teaching Resistance of a Wire as a Function of Temperature

We have developed a new simple experiment for the students where they can get a quantitative measure of how the resistance of a wire depends on the temperature of the wire. The only materials required are a copper wire coil, a DC voltage source, a digital ohmmeter, and a calorimeter with an analog thermometer. The students discover a linear relationship between temperature and resistance. The temperature coefficient is easily calculated from the slope of the graph and compared with the standard values. The experiment, although simple to perform and feasible with minimal equipment, does provide reasonable results and is appropriate for either high school students or an undergraduate physics laboratory. Also, the work would be of interest to teachers in an introductory-level physics course.

Taking on a manager role can support women’s physics lab identity development

Prior research has indicated that students in the undergraduate physics lab divide work inequitably with regard to gender. In this work, we further probed women’s experiences in lab group work, focusing on women who take on managerial and leadership roles in the lab. We interviewed and surveyed women enrolled in a sophomore-level project-based lab course, drawing on a practice-linked identity framework to characterize their opportunities for engagement and identity development within the course. Although we observed some gender inequities in group work, we also found that taking on a manager role had a positive impact on many women’s development of physics lab identity. Our results suggest that instructors should take into account women’s individual experiences and preferences for particular roles when structuring equitable group work.Received 31 August 2022Accepted 13 December 2022DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.19.010107Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI.Published by the American Physical SocietyPhysics Subject Headings (PhySH)Research AreasDiversity & inclusionLearning environmentProfessional TopicsLower undergraduate studentsPhysics Education Research

A novel cantenna based demonstration of frustrated total internal reflection as an analog for quantum tunnelling

We use a ‘Cantenna’ (portmanteau of ‘Can’ and ‘Antenna’), which is a unidirectional homemade waveguide, coupled to a standard readily available, 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi router as a source of microwaves to demonstrate Frustrated Total Internal reflection (FTIR) using paraffin-wax prisms. This largely inexpensive experiment provides an opportunity to demonstrate a process closely analogous to quantum tunnelling in an undergraduate physics lab. FTIR is often demonstrated with glass prisms and lasers, which may not allow for an intuitive understanding of evanescent waves and tunnelling. Wi-Fi signals with a wavelength of 12.5 cm, and large maneuverable prisms, allow the length of the ‘barrier’ to be changed in a tactile way where measurements could be taken with tools available in a standard physics lab.

A ‘Dynamic Kibble’ mass balance for the undergraduate physics teaching laboratory

Originally envisaged in 1975 to realise the SI unit of electrical current, the Ampere, the Kibble balance has since developed into a powerhouse of modern scientific measurement. By combining theoretical simplicity with precision of measurement, it has enabled the redefinition of Planck’s constant, and subsequently a practical method of defining the kilogram in terms of fundamental constants. This article introduces a novel version of this classic apparatus, the ‘Dynamic Kibble’ Balance. Dynamic in this case because the magnet velocity is now 3 orders of magnitude higher than the original, but the same theory applies. The apparatus is simple in approach, robust, easy to set up, and capable of a high level of precision using only electrical measurements (plus length and time). The importance of this measurement to metrology re-enforces the link between what is measured in the laboratory via calibration, measurement standards, and traceability. Using the apparatus and measurements described in this paper, the mass of the magnet assembly was measured as 19.4 ± 0.3 g, which lies within one SEM of the known value. This paper describes an uncomplicated method with a clear focus on the key physics and theory required. This experiment is intended for use in a first-year undergraduate physics laboratory. Further potential for both more advanced theory demonstration and experimental work is discussed.

Bringing three-dimensional learning to undergraduate physics: Insight from an introductory physics laboratory course

Three-dimensional learning (3DL) is an approach to science instruction that was developed for K-12 science education and that can provide guidance for improving undergraduate physics laboratories. In this paper, we describe efforts to comprehensively integrate 3DL into a sequence of undergraduate introductory physics for life sciences (IPLS) laboratory courses. This paper is tailored for introductory physics faculty interested in advancing their course's learning goals by simultaneously engaging students in experimental practices, scientific reasoning, and conceptual knowledge. We first review how several well-known laboratory curricula are already implicitly aligned with 3DL. We then describe our IPLS course sequence and show how each 3DL dimension—science and engineering practices, disciplinary core ideas, and crosscutting concepts—is integrated throughout the curriculum. To support implementation, we provide samples of our course documentation, a detailed account of our 3DL integration efforts, a guide to training and supporting teaching and learning assistants in a 3DL course, and a sample set of activities to guide students in participating in 3DL instruction in the supplementary material.

The superconducting transition and mixed state of YBa2Cu3O6.95: an undergraduate experiment

We describe a simple AC susceptometer built in-house that can be used to make high-resolution measurements of the magnetic susceptibility of high-temperature superconductors in an undergraduate physics lab. Our system, cooled using liquid nitrogen, can reach a base temperature of 77 K. Our apparatus does not require gas handling systems or PID temperature controllers. Instead, it makes use of a thermal circuit that is designed to allow the sample to cool on a time scale that is suitable for an undergraduate lab. Furthermore, the temperature drift rate at the superconducting transition temperature T c is low enough to allow for precise measurements of the complex magnetic susceptibility through T c, even for single-crystal samples with exceedingly sharp superconducting transitions. Using an electromagnet, we were able to apply static magnetic fields up to 63 mT at the sample site. By measuring the change in susceptibility as a function of the strength of an applied of static magnetic field, we were able to estimate the lower critical field H c1 of a single-crystal sample of optimally-doped YBa2Cu3O6.95 at 77 K. We also investigated the mixed state of a sintered polycrystalline sample of YBa2Cu3O6+y .

Simple device for spectroscopy laboratory exercises

Undergraduate physics laboratory exercises are very important in shaping students’ attitude to science, especially for future teachers. Recently, it is necessary to look for ways to easily create large quantities of experimental sets, not only for institutional use, but also for sets that can be produced in large quantities and distributed for use in distance learning. In this paper, we briefly describe the various ways to support the teaching of wave optics, and then describe one of the possible methods for performing undergraduate spectroscopic measurements using a 3D printed spectroscope and light source.

Interactive projectile motion STEM simulation and game, based on Scratch (S4A) and Arduino

A Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) tool is proposed in this manuscript; which consists of an interactive, simple and low-cost computer based simulation and game, with the aim of easing the teaching/learning process regarding the physics concept of projectile motion. The novelty of this proposal relies on the use of a joystick shield used as the input device that changes the projectile shooting angle, the initial velocity and height in a simulation coded in S4A (Scratch for Arduino). The electronic interface is based on an Arduino UNO and a dual-axis joystick module. This educational resource is suitable to be implemented in graduate or undergraduate physics laboratories, classrooms or even at home.

Student behavior in undergraduate physics laboratories: Designing experiments

We investigated physics students' learning experience and behaviour in a second-year laboratory by analyzing transcribed audio recordings of laboratory sessions. One student group was given both a problem and procedure and asked to analyze and explain their results. Another was provided with only the problem and asked to design and execute the experiment, interpret the data, and draw conclusions. These two approaches involved different levels of student inquiry and they have been described as guided and open inquiry respectively. The latter gave students more opportunities to practice "designing experiments," one of the six major learning outcomes in the recommendations for the undergraduate physics laboratory curriculum by the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT). Qualitative analysis was performed of the audio transcripts to identify emergent themes and it was augmented by quantitative analysis for a richer understanding of students' experiences. An important finding is that significant improvements can be made to undergraduate laboratories impacting both student learning experience and behaviour by increasing the level of inquiry in laboratory experiments. This is most easily achieved by requiring students to design their own experimental procedures.

Soil analysis using a 2″ NaI gamma detector

We describe an undergraduate physics laboratory experiment that uses a 2-inch diameter NaI gamma detector to measure natural radiation in soils. Students first calibrate the detector for the source-detector geometry, energy-dependent detection efficiency, and sample self-absorption. Then, the activity of the 238U and 232Th decay series, as well as the activity of 40K in the soil, are measured. The results are comparable in accuracy to those obtained using a high-resolution germanium gamma detector.

Commercial virtual reality headsets for developing augmented reality setups to track three-dimensional motion in real time

We designed and tested a 3D motion tracking system which displays acquired and derived data using augmented reality. This setup, based on a virtual reality headset and its controllers, is a relatively low-cost, high-precision, six degrees of freedom, high-speed, multiple-objects tracking device. This apparatus proves to be a very high-quality motion sensor which can be used in the physics laboratory for motion tracking. Stereo cameras may also be attached to the headset in order to achieve augmented reality, which can be a winning addition in order to effectively use these devices in the physics laboratory. In view of its characteristics, this system can be adopted in the study of motion both at high school and undergraduate physics laboratories.

Circuit analogue of relativistic aberration of light using low-cost, low-complexity operational amplifier-based all-pass filters

We propose, simulate, and experimentally demonstrate a circuit analogue of a special relativity phenomenon known as relativistic aberration of light (RAL) by using a surprisingly simple, low-cost, and easily accessible electronic circuit-based all-pass filter. This work is useful for two audiences: (i) physicists who are interested in research on circuit analogues; and (ii) physics educators who are interested in using the research results to raise interest among students by incorporating analogue-based learning into undergraduate physics lecture and laboratory courses. For the first type of audience, we present a rigorous theoretical framework describing this RAL-on-an-electronic-chip analogy. We show by (i) analytical modelling, (ii) commercial circuit software simulation, and (iii) experiment that the electrical phase shift Φ of the output signal is analogous to the RAL angle, Ψ. This parameter opens up a path among researchers to model the effects of other relativistic phenomena with electronic circuits. For the second type of audience, we discuss the potential role of RAL-on-an-electronic-chip in physics education (both in lectures and laboratory) that combines students’ learnings of both physics and electronic circuits, at the same time. We also explore briefly its relevance to engineering education.

Conductance quantization in atomic-sized gold contacts using a low-cost mechanically controllable break junction setup

The mechanically controllable break junction (MCBJ) experimental setup is one of the main techniques employed in the study of electronic transport properties at the atomic and molecular scales. This work presents the construction of an inexpensive and simple but robust setup that shows the emergence of conductance quantization as a macroscopic gold wire is pulled to atomic dimensions. The homemade device is based on the MCBJ principle and allows repeatedly forming and breaking the metallic contact to perform a statistical analysis of the data extracting the most frequent electron transport structure. The histogram built from conductance measurements, at room temperature in air, show that the quality of the MCBJ equipment developed here is comparable to that of more sophisticated devices used in research laboratories. It is able to resolve up to three conductance peaks associated with gold nanowires reported in the literature. Such an experiment is suggested to be implemented as a powerful pedagogical tool in modern undergraduate physics labs.