Physics Commons^™

In Pursuit Of A Good Night’S Rest. Steps Towards Improving Electroencephalogram (Eeg) Accessibility And Affordability, Niyant Vora

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

The Electroencephalogram (EEG), which is used to effectively record brain waves, has long been a key pillar of sleep research. However, sleep research has an important problem–the natural environment in which people sleep (their bedrooms), is not where sleep research is conducted. Several companies have released EEG headsets to try and address this problem, however, there are still many obstacles to home use. Such headsets are too expensive to be used by everyone and are still not effective enough to be utilized by physicians performing sleep studies. The goal of our research is to find affordable and innovative ways to …

Design And Engineering Of A Millimeter-Wavelength Spectrometer, Constantine Karas, Kyle O’Shea, Thushara Perera, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

Poster presentation abstract.

Nanovaterite Synthesis And Processing, Zhenghao Ding, Timothy Rettich, Faculty Advisor, Gabriel Spalding, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

Poster presentation abstract.

Quantum Optics And Single Photon Quantum Information Processing, Zhenghao Ding, Lunjun Liu, Gabriel Spalding, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

Poster presentation abstract.

Thermal Modeling Of A Millimeter Wavelength Light Detector, Fiona Breyer, Thushara Perera, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

Poster presentation abstract.

Demonstration Of Ion Trap Principles, Zhenghao Ding, Lunjun Liu, Gabriel C. Spalding, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

Particle trapping is a state-of-the-art technology, which already a powerful tool for scientists working with micro- and nano-components. Much interest now revolves around length scales where quantum mechanical effects become pronounced. Quantum mechanics forms our only framework for understanding many problems in solid-state physics (e.g., magnetism), and is playing an ever more important role in applied chemistry, biochemistry and many other areas. Trapping technologies provide a test bed for systematic exploration of fundamental paradigms, offering enhancements to our understanding of key mechanisms and, perhaps, opportunities for quantum information technology. We have assembled a Newtonian Lab demonstration trap, demonstrating …

What Color Are Purple Butterfly Wings: A Study Of Optical Structures, Victoria Halevy, Tyler Sterr, Bruno Deharak, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

At first glance, morpho butterfly wings appear to be a purple color. However, when they are held up to the light, they seem transparent. This is because morpho butterfly wings get their brilliant colors from the physical structure of the scales on the surface of the wing. This structure is a series of ridges spaced a few hundred nanometers apart. When light shines on these ridges, interference effects cause iridescence. We measured the spectrum of light reflected from a wing as a function of reflected angle and modeled these results mathematically. We also looked at morpho butterfly wings using a …

Optical Cloaking By Aberation Correction, Joseph Richards, Julia Savich, Gabriel C. Spalding, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

Light incident on a material is scattered and then continues its propagation in seemingly random directions. If one can force light to pass through a material and not scatter, however, then one could “see” through the material. This scattering of light can be described as aberration within the light. A technique used for “Aberration Correction” is adding phase-shifts to regions of light allowing for all wave fronts of light to interfere in a constructive manner. This is accomplished in the use of a Spatial Light Modulator (SLM). The SLM, an array of linearly aligned crystals, allow for added phase shifts …

Tests Of A Novel Technique For Finding Galaxies In Millimeter Wavelength Maps, Alejandro Mancera, Thushara Perera, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

The study of very distant “dusty” galaxies whose visible light is obscured by cosmic dust is a developing field in astronomy. To discover such galaxies, images of the sky are made with telescopes sensitive to millimeter-wavelength light. Because these images are inherently low in signal-to-noise, special image processing techniques are needed to reliably identify galaxies in them. Usually, a software “filter” is applied to a sky image in order to better distinguish galaxies from noise. We have developed a novel filter that, in principle, performs better than the standard filter used in the astronomical community. Our study, which involved testing …

A Graphical Introduction To Special Relativity Based On A Modern Approach To Minkowski Diagrams, Boxiang Liu, Thushara Perera, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

We present a graphical method that can be used to learn/teach Einstein’s special theory of relativity. The “Minkowski diagram”, developed in 1908 by Hermann Minkowski, has long been recognized as an effective graphical tool for introducing special relativity. In our study, we adapted and modernized this graphical method in a way that would help current college students progress from Galilean transformations (based on Newton's Three Laws of Motion) to the kinematics of relativity and other key results. This study has revealed new ways to apply Minkowski diagrams to well known problems in relativity. Here, we will introduce our graphical technique …

Particle Tracking And Aod Control, Nathaniel Wolanyk, Carl Mueller, Patrick Dahl, Evan Baker, Gabriel Spalding, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

No abstract provided.

Rotational Properties Of Trojan Asteroid 5209, Daniel Larocca, Linda French, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

We present VR photometric observations of several Trojan asteroids and of asteroid 5209 1 989 CW1. Trojan Asteroids are found in the L4 and L5 stable Lagrange points of Jupiter's orbit. These asteroids are farther away and generally more dim than Main Belt asteroids and have received less attention from observers in the past. By plotting the lightcurve of the asteroid, we were able to determine the rotation period and the lightcurve amplitude. The goal of this research is to eventually understand the collision history of the Trojan asteroids and to compare the asteroids to those in the Main Belt. …

Creating A Simple Open Source Matlab Program Used To Control Adaptive Optics, Evan Baker, Carl Mueller, Patrick Dahl, Nathanial Wolanyk, Gabriel Spalding, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

No abstract provided.

Comparison Of Aberration Correction Methodologies, Patrick Dahl, Carl Mueller, Nathanial Wolanyk, Evan Baker, Gabriel Spalding, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

No abstract provided.

Ir Astrometry And Photometry Of The Abell 1882 Supergroup, Derrick Rohl, Linda French, Faculty Advisor, Percy Gomez, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

Previously observed characteristics of the Abell 1 882 supergroup show signs of early stages of cluster formation. Supergroups and clusters have already been studied, but the unique stage of Abell 1 882 will aid in understanding the process of galaxy cluster formation. The data set contains observations from the Infrared Side Port Imager at the 4.0-m Blanco telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) during May 2010. The data reduction process, unique challenges of working with infrared data, and preliminary results will be discussed.

Rohl worked with Gomez from January through March 201 1 as a research assistant with …

Improving Data Filtering With Aztec Group, Jesse Schaar, Thushara Perera, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

No abstract provided.

Electrochemical Etching Technique For Fabricating Tungsten Nanotips, Thomas Bersano, Bruno Deharak, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

No abstract provided.