Conference Session

Programmatic Issues in Physics or Engineering Phys

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Evan Lemley, University of Central Oklahoma; Baha Jassemnejad, University of Central Oklahoma; Matthew Mounce, US Navy; Jamie Weber, Parsons; Sudarshan Rai, Unknown; Willy Duffle, University of Central Oklahoma; Jesse Haubrich, University of Central Oklahoma

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

AC 2010-1861: LINKING SENIOR DESIGN PROJECTS TO RESEARCHPROJECTSEvan Lemley, University of Central OklahomaBaha Jassemnejad, University of Central OklahomaMatthew Mounce, US NavyJamie Weber, ParsonsSudarshan Rai, UnknownWilly Duffle, University of Central OklahomaJesse Haubrich, University of Central OklahomaBahman Taheri, Alphamicron Page 15.845.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2010 LINKING SENIOR DESIGN PROJECTS TO RESEARCH PROJECTSAbstractSenior design projects form an important capstone for most engineering disciplines and mustconsist of the realistic application of the engineering design process. Some senior engineeringstudents

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

methods of teaching in the lectureor the laboratory. We use a laboratory project-based approach, where the students arelearning by doing. The course is divided into two sections, lecture and laboratory session.During the laboratory session, the students work at mid-term and final projects, while thelecture the programming, numerical and computational techniques and methods arediscussed. The usefulness of this approach is evaluated by surveys conducted everysemester, and feedback from other educators is highly appreciated.I. IntroductionComputational physics is an independent way of doing physics, and an essential tool ofthe physics research. Numerical computations are essential to further understanding ofphysics problems, and computers and

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching Physics or Engineering Physics

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jian Peng, Southeast Missouri State University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

, computer architecture, and peripheral hardware issues are discussed throughout thecourse so that the students gain a working knowledge of these topics. Hands-on learning isemphasized through simulation, hardware and software labs, and a final project. Also weemphasize the system-level design, high-level language, and connections between the Clanguage, assembly, and the underline hardware architecture. The outcomes of this course haveshown that this approach (1) inspires engineering physics students to be interested inmicrocontrollers, (2) provides students with a less compartmentalized view of manyhardware/software topics, and finally (3) underscores the importance of system-level design withjust enough understanding about individual components or

Conference Session

Programmatic Issues in Physics or Engineering Phys

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Randy Buchanan, University of Southern Mississippi; Christopher Winstead, University of Southern Mississippi; Anton Netchaev, University of Southern Mississippi; Steven Allee, University of Southern Mississippi

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Physics & Physics

measurement of H2 concentration in the purge gas. A commercialH2 sensor will be characterized for use as the real-time sensor and H2 concentration as anindicator of the effectiveness of the purging process, thus enabling the minimizing of heliumwaste. A test apparatus for water and liquid nitrogen flow research was retrofitted to provide formeasurement of hydrogen in a helium flow stream. Results are currently being compiled but willbe presented in the final paper, as well as the overall process and activities related to studentlearning.Student InvolvementThe project was the result of collaboration between the programs of Physics and ElectronicsEngineering Technology. Students participated in the design, specification, acquisition, andinstallation of

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

ElectromagneticsElectromagnetics is a rather challenging topic for many physics and engineering students, as theelectric and magnetic fields are invisible and the mathematics is very complicated. Therefore,without the help of CAD software, students often feel that this abstract theory has littleconnection with the real world. As a result, students tend to memorize a few equations, butcannot apply them in practical problems. There are many advanced EM field simulation softwarepackages available, and we adopted QuickFieldTM, which is very easy to use and its limitation in2D simulation is not an issue for this class.The first project assigned in this course was in the area of electrostatics, and the topic wascapacitive sensor. As the capacitance depends both on the geometry

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

activitycan provide a valuable context to incorporate state-of-the-art research topics in nanotechnologyinto the undergraduate curriculum. The activity is interdisciplinary in the sense that conceptsfrom physics, chemistry, and engineering are introduced. We performed this activity in twotypes of physics courses; several sections of a second semester general physics laboratory andalso a junior level course for electrical and computer engineers, Solid State Device Physics (PHY3680). The student responses were overwhelmingly positive and it was apparent that they wereenthusiastic about participating in a project involving state-of-the-art research. Even withouthaving access to expensive fabrication equipment, students were able to produce a