Conference Session

Engineering Physics & Physics Division Technical Session 3

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Xaver Neumeyer, Western Michigan University; Kathleen Teressa Foote, North Carolina State University; Robert J. Beichner, North Carolina State University; Melissa H. Dancy, University of Colorado, Boulder; Charles Henderson, Western Michigan University

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Engineering Physics & Physics

attributes such as gender, teaching experience, SCALE-UP userstatus and disciplinary affiliation showed no effect on instructors‟ role or status in the network.Introduction and Literature review There has been significant criticism of college-level teaching, particularly in the science,technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines (REFS). Much time, money andeffort has been put into documenting the effectiveness of innovative teaching methods andcurriculum and in disseminating these results. Available evidence indicates that while theseefforts have had some influence on mainstream teaching, the majority of teaching is stillinconsistent with what research has shown to be best practices 1–4. Without a betterunderstanding of how

Conference Session

Engineering Physics & Physics Division Technical Session 3

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Wenli Guo, Queensborough Community College; Vazgen Shekoyan, Queensborough Community College

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Engineering Physics & Physics

theirown mistakes and avoid making any similar mistakes again in the future. Unfortunately inreality, it is commonly known that most students do not make full use of the learning potential ofthese assessments. (Henderson & Harper 2009) They either look at these solutions superficiallyor simply are discouraged by their bad scores hoping to see a better grade next time or choose towithdraw from the class or simply change their majors to avoid taking physics. Quizzes/examsare thought by students as a report for their performance but not chances to improve theirlearning, professor’s time in some means are wasted.The typical PH411 Calculus Physics I course has four 50-minute lectures and one 1 hr 50 minutelong laboratory per week. The official

Conference Session

Engineering Physics & Physics Division Technical Session 2

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jeffrey A. Jalkio, University of St. Thomas; Brianna R. McIntyre, University of St. Thomas

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

wasused to find equipotential surfaces forcomplex electrode shapes and it hasbeen well characterized over the years3.For the purpose of this exercise we Figure 1 – tank used for experimental portion of exercisefabricated a set of aluminum electrodes Page 24.841.3for each of the three geometries andused a plastic tank filled with tapwater. For ease of measurement, weprovided a plastic mesh at the bottomof our water tanks so that studentscould easily hold their electricalprobes in fixed locations as seen infigure 1. While alternating currents areused in water simulation tanks to avoidelectrolysis at

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Research in Physics or Engineering Physics II

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Varun Kumar Karingula, Indiana University Purdue University, Indianapolis; Hazim A El-Mounayri, Indiana University Purdue University, Indianapolis; Tamer M. Wasfy, Indiana University Purdue University, Indianapolis; Hatem M Wasfy, Advanced Science and Automation Corp.; Jeanne Michele Peters, Advanced Science and Automation Corp.

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Engineering Physics & Physics

analyzed to assess the effectiveness of the VPL. In general, a consistent improvement due to the training and practice in the virtual lab is observed. The VPL presents itself as a viable tool for high school students to better prepare for college physics in cost-effective, easily accessible, and effective way.     Introduction  Having grown with different kinds of digital technology, today’s student is aware of most technologies; as a result, he/she is being referred to as the ‘Digital student’ or part of the ‘Net Generation’ 1 , 2 . Information technology has brought unique capabilities to learning spaces, whether stimulating greater interaction through the use of collaborative tools, videoconferencing with

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics I

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Chih-Hsiung Ku, National Dong Hwa University; Wen-Cheng Chen, National Dong Hwa University; Lee king-lien, Department of Electro-Optic Engineering,National Taipei University of Technology; CHAO-CHIA CHENG, NATIONAL CENTRAL UNIV

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Engineering Physics & Physics

not in accordance with scientific concepts hasproven to be important in science learning 2.Many studies had verified that students and adults are accustomed to solve problems in physicson the basis of everyday concepts7. Those individual’s conceptions differed from scientificknowledge were often called different term, but the one most common and appealing one is‘alternative conceptions’8. It is helpful for science educator to explore students’ alternativeconceptions. Electricity is one of the basic scientific topics with relevance to every life. To date,there are many studies had been carried out to determine students ’ understanding on electricalconceptions 1, 2, 8, 9, 10. It is found that as students progress through their science

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics I

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Patricia F. Mead, Norfolk State University; Ruth A. Streveler, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Lauren D. Thomas, Virginia Tech; Candace A. Cobb, Norfolk State University

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Engineering Physics & Physics

effective teaching and learning in STEM educationalsettings: curriculum (content), instructional practices (pedagogy), and assessment[1]. Theseelements should be explicitly linked as educators design courses and educational materials.Norfolk State University established Bachelor and Master of Science programs in OpticalEngineering in fall 2003. Optical Engineering is an emerging discipline that bridges Physics andElectrical Engineering principles, and currently only five ABET accredited Optical Engineeringprograms exist in the U.S. As a newly developing area, the curricular structure of U.S. OpticalEngineering programs are somewhat fluid, including a clear understanding of the challengesstudents face as they move through the optical engineering

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics II

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Baha Jassemnejad, University of Central Oklahoma; Wei Siang Pee, University of Central Oklahoma; Kevin Rada; Montell Jermaine Wright, University of Central Oklahoma, Robotics Research; Kaitlin Rose Foran, University of Central Oklahoma; Evan C. Lemley, University of Central Oklahoma

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Engineering Physics & Physics

severalthe benefits of hands-on activities in promoting subprojects and areas as illustrated by thelearning in science courses relative to the traditional organizational chart in Figure 1.lecture-only approach at the elementary, middle andhigh school level [1][2][3][4]. Studies at theuniversity level have also suggested improvedlearning outcomes in engineering courses whenhands-on activities are a part of the lesson plan[5][6]. Moreover, these outcomes are in agreementwith what current theories of learning would predict[7]. Project-based learning involving hands-onactivities has been introduced into engineeringcourses to improve student motivation andengagement. A challenge has been to identifyprojects at the freshman level

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics I

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sudipa Mitra-Kirtley, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology; Rana Mitra, Southeastern Louisiana University; Maarij M Syed, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology

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Engineering Physics & Physics

their plots dictate? What willhappen if they use their entire arm lengths instead of the just their forearms? Is it easier to hold theweights at a greater angle from the horizontal? Can this be explained by the “resistive term” of themoment of inertia of the arm about the pivot point? Force sensor  Hanging mass Hinged end Figure 1. A model of a static equilibrium situationAnother experiment that is being developed at SELU involves the leg as the movable “arm”. The samemodels will be used, but now the students will be experimenting by lifting weights with their

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Research in Physics or Engineering Physics I

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Baha Jassemnejad, University of Central Oklahoma; Scott Tracewell StJohn; Evan C. Lemley, University of Central Oklahoma; Kevin Rada, University of Central Oklahoma, Department of Engineering and Physics; Juan Camilo Orozco

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Engineering Physics & Physics

of life. This style of hands-on introductoryengineering curriculum course has been advanced as one approach to improving retention1.Introduction courses are important because freshmen engineering students “have unclear goalsand values”, “are apprehensive and anxious about their unfamiliar surroundings and newexperiences”, and “are not well versed about the culture and expectations of engineering studyand are unaware of optimum strategies for approaching it”1. It is believed that the introductorycourses are a crucial part of addressing these psychological challenges for freshmen engineeringstudents1. This is borne out by some data; intro courses with an emphasis on hands-on learning,helping students become accustomed to their new setting

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Research in Physics or Engineering Physics I

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michael De Antonio, New Mexico State University

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Engineering Physics & Physics

review cycle and forward.1 The definition previously stated that ProgramEducational Objectives are broad statements that describe the career and professionalaccomplishments that the program is preparing the graduate to achieve. This definition is nowchanged to Program Educational Objectives are broad statements that describe what graduatesare expected to attain within a few years of graduation.2 In light of these changes, ABETsuggests that programs reassess their Program Educational Objectives to fit the new criteriondefinition.BackgroundWorkshops and papers have addressed the previous definition of Educational Objectives. Locke3in his ABET workshop at the 2010 ASEE Midwest Section Conference states that some of themost common pitfalls when

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Research in Physics or Engineering Physics II

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Marie Lopez del Puerto, University of Saint Thomas; Jeff Jalkio, University of Saint Thomas; Paul R. Ohmann, University of Saint Thomas

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Engineering Physics & Physics

byElectrical Engineering and Physics majors.We first introduced “Equations in Words” in our courses as part of homework or in-classproblem packets. We showed students an example of an equation in words to clarify theexpectation that they were not to do a literal translation symbol by symbol but that they had tothink about the physical meaning of the equation. A typical “Equations in Words” problem fromthe Waves unit in Classical Physics II is shown below: Consider the following equation: ∆L = 𝑛 + 1 2  𝜆 n = 0, 1, 2, 3, … a) This equation applies to: b) The variables and their units are: ΔL n λ c) Explain the equation in your own words: d) Draw

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Research in Physics or Engineering Physics II

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gary P. Hillebrand, University of Detroit Mercy; Meghann Norah Murray, University of Detroit Mercy; Jenna Ross; Robert A. Ross, University of Detroit Mercy; Cherron Tarter, Ford Motor Company

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Engineering Physics & Physics

modified thecurriculum to incorporate additional activities.1 This paper will describe a physics laboratoryexperiment to simulate the operation of the touchscreen on a smartphone.A detailed description of the activity will be provided. The simulator is fabricated usingcommon office and laboratory supplies and is inexpensive enough that students can keep themodel. We describe how the simulator is used in two different courses. One course is designedfor high school students attending a university enrichment program, the other is a second-semester undergraduate general physics laboratory course.In addition we present the results of an open-ended assessment of student learning. Students areengaged to write to a specific prompt and we assess the

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Research in Physics or Engineering Physics III

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Baha Jassemnejad, University of Central Oklahoma; Wei Siang Pee, University of Central Oklahoma; Kevin Rada, University of Central Oklahoma; Devon Kelley Keith, University of Central Oklahoma; Dylan Bradley Miller; Evan C. Lemley, University of Central Oklahoma; Adam Dorety, University of Central Oklahoma

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Engineering Physics & Physics

modified a prototype ROV. Page 25.116.2 1 INTRODUCTIONThe Summer Bridge program is designed for incoming freshmen with STEM (Science, Technology,Engineering and Mathematics) majors who desire an educational approach that emphasizes learningthrough participation in research and engineering activities in their field of study. The students mustapply for, and be accepted into, a research group that most interests them. Students in the research groupare then given a project assignment, and provided with the necessary knowledge (principles, tools, andtechniques

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Research in Physics or Engineering Physics I

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Marie Lopez del Puerto, University of Saint Thomas

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

are required to take several Physics courses: thecalculus-based introductory Classical Physics sequence, Applications of Modern Physics, and atwo-semester Electricity and Magnetism (E&M) sequence. The introductory physics and E&Msequences are well established. However, it became clear after the EE program was started thatwe needed to redevelop the Applications of Modern Physics course so that it bridges theintroductory and advanced courses, is relevant and useful to both Physics and EE majors, andmotivates further study in both fields. Our goal is to develop a sophomore-level Applications ofModern Physics course based on Physics Education Research proven best-practices that: (1) as an allied requirement for Electrical Engineering

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Research in Physics or Engineering Physics I

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jia-Ling Lin, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities; Manuela Romero, University of Wisconsin, Madison; Jennifer Binzley, University of Wisconsin, Madison; Eman A. Zaki, University of Wisconsin, Madison

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Engineering Physics & Physics

25.1474.2students’ perceptions of the learning environment significantly impacted learning. Students whoparticipated in SI sessions indicated that academic support programs like SI played a key role infostering effective learning of course material and in promoting a spirit of joyful learning.1 Researchers in physics education have found that students’ attitudes toward learningsignificantly impact what students actually learn.3-7 Several instruments, including the MarylandPhysics Expectations Survey (MPEX),4 Views About Science Survey (VASS),5 theEpistemological Beliefs Assessment (EBAPS),6 and the Colorado Learning Attitudes aboutScience Survey (CLASS)7 were designed to assess students’ attitudes toward learning. Resultsfrom extensive survey studies

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Research in Physics or Engineering Physics III

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Bert Pariser, Technical Career Institutes

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Engineering Physics & Physics

25.1040.2PHOTON MASSThe Helium Neon Laser operation is dependent on Light Amplification by Stimulated Emissionof Radiation. The metastable helium atoms in the 3P2 state collide with the Neon atoms andtransfer the energy to the 3S state of Neon. When the excited neon atom in 3S releases a photonit drops to the 2P energy state. The quantum of energy is emitted as a photon. Professor Willis ELamb wrote a paper “Theory of the Optical Maser”1. My research on gaseous lasers “TimeDevelopment of a Laser Signal”2 demonstrated how this transfer of energy from heliummetastable atom produces an excited state in the neon atom.Conventional physics has established that a photon has momentum, but does not have mass. Icannot find a reference in the literature for a

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Research in Physics or Engineering Physics I

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jian Peng, Southeast Missouri State University; Santaneel Ghosh, Southeast Missouri State University; Ken Surendran, Southeast Missouri State University

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Engineering Physics & Physics

Technology, Madras, India, and Ph.D. in applied analysis from State University of New York, Stony Brook. He is a senior life member of IEEE and a member of ACM and AITP. Page 25.1109.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2012 Reflections on Teaching a Consolidated Capstone Design Course to a Mixed Student BodyI. IntroductionDesign is widely considered to be the central or distinguishing activity of engineering 1. TheCapstone Design course has usually been designed as a senior project laboratory to allowinggraduating seniors become prepared for working in

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Research in Physics or Engineering Physics III

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Yumin Zhang, Southeast Missouri State University; David K. Probst, Southeast Missouri State University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

learned in the past can serveas stepping stones for the new knowledge.I. IntroductionElectromagnetics is widely considered as a very difficult course, and students often get lost at thebeginning. There are several challenges: mathematics, imagination, as well as new concepts andapproaches. First, vector calculus is the language of Electromagnetics, and many students havepoor background in this subject.1 Second, most students can visualize the motion of particles, butthey have a hard time imagining the spatial distribution of the EM field.2 Third, a number of newconcepts and theorems are introduced in a short period of time, as well as new approaches tosolve problems.3 One way to overcome these challenges is to engage new technology.4 There

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Research in Physics or Engineering Physics II

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Bert Pariser, Technical Career Institutes

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

email form which they could use for their compositions. The students werethen required to attach the composition to an email and then send the email to me.Figure 1 is a paragraph from the physics PHY201 syllabus .WRITING:Each week students are required to write a composition about the chapter. Thecomposition should be saved as a word document and submittedAs an attachment by email.Figure 1The student compositions where now easy to read but usually were not very interesting. To helpmy students improve their understanding of physics I decided to have them write about thehomework problems. Physics problems are usually a minimum of four or five lines. Students

Conference Session

Physics Poster Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jennifer Rose Annoni, University of St. Thomas; Adam S. Green, University of St. Thomas; Marie Lopez del Puerto, University of Saint Thomas

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

from theHOMO to the LUMO, plus the hole that the electron left behind.The Schrödinger equation for a spherical infinite potential well can be solved analytically, andresults in the following quantized energy levels: !! !! !! 𝐸= !!! ! ,    𝑛 = 1, 2, 3, … [1]where h is Planck’s constant, m is the particle’s mass R is the radius of the quantum dot.As mentioned above, for excited quantum dots there are two particles to consider, the electronand the hole, such that the energy for the first excited state becomes !! !! !! !! 𝐸

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics II

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Yumin Zhang, Southeast Missouri State University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

states. Following this formula, eachmagnetic dipole or each capacitor can only record 1 bit of information, while each base pair inDNA can record 2 bits of information.Towards the end of the semester, students were required to write a term paper on the applicationof entropy in different areas. The students investigated many interesting topics, such as steamengines, chemical processes, biological systems, neural networks in brain, the birth and death ofstars, black holes, global warming, economics and social organizations, etc. Through this termpaper students expanded their perspective and realized that entropy is a very general conceptwhich may be applied to many seemingly unrelated areas.IV. AssessmentTwo years ago the author taught this course

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics II

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jeffrey A. Jalkio, University of Saint Thomas

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

uniformprobability distribution with a standard deviation =a/3. Uncertainties are propagated in thesame manner as in traditional error analysis6. For a measurement result y based on a set of ndirect measurements xi through a measurement equation y=f(x1..xn), the expanded uncertainty iny is 2 n  f  n 1 n f f Uy  kp     xi 2  2   xi x j Page 22.1048.3 i 1  xi

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics I

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Adrian Ieta, Oswego State University College; Rachid Manseur, State University of New York, Oswego; Thomas E. Doyle P.Eng., McMaster University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

design the lab space for research became available. While the development of the lab startedon a small institutional grant, proposals for future funding have been submitted to nationalagencies. The successful experience in lab development discussed in this article can be ofinterest to other instructors with similar targets.INTRODUCTIONLaboratory activity is essential for student success and preparation for industry, research, andreal-life work [1, 2]. Setting up a new lab or improving the ones in place [2-4] is always achallenging task. Laboratory development is often one of the important tasks assigned to newfaculty, who normally have good research experience but have not yet acted on their own tomanage funds, select suppliers, make purchases

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics II

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Robert Ross, University of Detroit Mercy; Meghann Norah Murray, University of Detroit Mercy

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

recognition of their contributionto the emerging field of polymer chemistry, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for 2000 was awardedto Heeger, MacDiarmid, and Shirakawa “for the discovery and development of electricallyconductive polymers.”1 In the ensuing years the field has experienced tremendous growth.Electroluminescence was reported in large (millimeter scale) anthracene crystals, under theapplication of several thousand volts by Helfrich and Schneider.2 The first rectifying deviceswere developed at Eastman Kodak in 1987 by Tang and VanSlyke.3 These thin film organicstructures exhibited high external quantum efficiency (10-2 photon/electron), luminous efficiency(1.5 lumens/watt), and brightness (103 candelas/m2). The first rectifying devices that

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics I

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kristi J. Shryock, Texas A&M University; Arun R. Srinivasa, Texas A&M University, Department of Mechanical Engineering; Jefferey E. Froyd, Texas A&M University

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Engineering Physics & Physics

physics mechanics skills. The resulting set of physics mechanicstopics for which engineering faculty members expected student mastery are listed in Table 1.Table 1. First-year Physics Mechanics Topics Determined by Engineering Faculty Members Free Body Diagram Newton’s Second Law Newton’s Third LawUsing this set of topics and the original problems to guide the authors about the expectations ofthe engineering faculty members, the authors created a 16-question, alpha version of aninstrument to assess student abilities with respect to expectations. Several of the problems camedirectly from the MBT since faculty had provided a limited set of direct physics mechanics-related questions. The instrument was then reviewed by two of the

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics II

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Teresa L. Larkin, American University

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Engineering Physics & Physics

student population. Preliminary results suggest that whilefemales have, on average, higher overall grades in the course as well as higher overall GPAs,their gains as measured by the FCI are lower than those achieved by male students. A discussionof the significance of these results will be presented and possible issues related to this apparentgender discrepancy will be proposed.I. INTRODUCTION An essential function of teaching is the promotion and enhancement of student learning.Traditional teaching methodologies have clearly been shown to put students in a role of passiverather than active learning [1]. Traditional instructional methods have also been shown to bevery inadequate in terms of promoting deep learning and long-term retention

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics I

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Daniel Ludwigsen, Kettering University; Janet Brelin-Fornari, Kettering University; Joseph Neal, Kettering University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

value in that, as is stated by,“virtually no meaningful learning takes place.” 1 The previous physics laboratory employed these“cookbook” experiments; students would execute without generating work or procedures of theirown, leading to an inadequate linking of physical laws with work performed outside of theclassroom and poor retention of skills and concepts. This lead to the development of Crash intoPhysics using an inquiry/discovery laboratory style that is based on the lab structure of RealTimePhysics.2An alternative to the expository style that requires more student engagement might be describedas a discovery or inquiry style. A discovery style laboratory has a predetermined outcome,inductive reasoning approach and the procedure is student

Conference Session

Programmatic Issues in Physics or Engineering Phys

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Yumin Zhang, Southeast Missouri State University; David Probst, Southeast Missouri State University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

and the dielectric material,students designed many kinds of sensors. The simplest one is a pressure sensor based on aparallel capacitor, which is shown in Fig.1. The distance between the two capacitor plates isrelated to the external pressure; the higher the pressure, the larger the capacitance. On the otherhand, the idealized theoretical model often assumes the electric field is confined between the twoplates, but the simulation result shows clearly there is a wide range distribution of the fringefield. In addition, students can also investigate the electric charge distribution on the plates,electrostatic potential energy density and the total capacitance. Fig. 1. Potential and field around a parallel plate

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Robert Ross, University of Detroit Mercy

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

could also be used in anappropriate upper level electrical or chemical engineering course. Subsequently, we describesome future plans for the activity which, along with some other curricula, may culminate in theintroduction of a stand-alone nanotechnology course and possibly a minor in nanotechnology. Page 15.61.2Device Physics of a Thin Film Organic Solar Cell Incorporating the Fullerene, C60Shown below in Figure 1 is a schematic representation of a thin film polymer solar cell1incorporating the fullerene C60. Commercial glass substrates coated with indium tin oxide (ITO)with a sheet resistance of about 10Ω/□ are used to form the anodes. The

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Radian Belu, Drexel University; Alexandru Belu, Case Western Research University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

computer through a mix of numerical analysis, analytical models, andprogramming to solve otherwise intractable problems. It is a skill that can be acquiredand refined - knowing how to set up the simulation, what numerical methods to employ,how to implement them efficiently, when to trust the accuracy of the results. In the lasttwo decades, however, computational physics has largely been neglected in the standarduniversity physics curriculum1-5. In part, this is because it requires balanced integration ofthree commonly disjoint disciplines: physics, numerical analysis, and computer Page 15.46.2programming (Figure 1). The lack of computing hardware