William Simmons with Prof. John Ruhl Superconducting Magnetic BearingThe goal of this project is to design, build and test a superconducting magnetic bearing. The design may be used in a balloon borne polarimetry experiment, where it will be used to rotate a half wave plate. A superconducting bearing is optimal...
Academic Year
Karen Vaughn with Prof. Mehran Mehregany (Dept. of EECS)MEMS Resonators for High-Temperature ApplicationsMicroelectromechanical systems (MEMS) resonators are used in a variety of devices to act as a frequency reference, and, in some applications, frequency stability is required for temperatures well above 300°C. It is hypothesized that silicon carbide (SiC)...
Erik Walker with Prof. Charles RosenblattControl of an Oil Drop Formation in a Liquid Crystal MatrixWhen an oil and liquid crystal mixture is cooled quickly from high temperatures, phase separation may occur. Oil droplets appear and may form a pearl-like chain along the director. I am trying to control...
Matthew Bird with Charles Rosenblatt Long Term Behavior of Rayleigh-Taylor Instabilities in Immiscible Fluids with Precise Control of Initial ConditionsA magnetic field is used to pull a less dense paramagnetic fluid below a fluid of higher density. A Rayleigh-Taylor instability occurs when the magnetic field is turned off and the...
Tom Boatwright with Ken SingerLinear and Nonlinear Optical Properties of Multilayer Polymer Films - Photonic Crystals in a Polymer LaserRecent technological developments have facilitated the creation of nanometer-scale multilayered polymer films via extrusion of polymer sheets. While groups have demonstrated that multilayered films possess properties of 1-dimensional photonic crystals,...
Frank Calma with John Ruhl (project started January 2006)Magnetic Bearing for Cosmic Microwave PolarimetryBalloon borne polarimetry experiments such as the BOOMERANG experiment require adjustable polarimetry apparatus with low frictional loss or heat discharge. One such design is to use a bearing containing a half wave-plate polarimeter. Unfortunately, typical mechanical...
Melissa DeLucchi with Corbin CovaultFeasibility Simulations of and Improvements Upon the X-Ray Occulting Steerable SatelliteThe X-rays emitted by high energy astrophysical systems can be used to create images of these sources, which help us to better understand the structure of our universe. Unfortunately, current X-Ray detection methods achieve relatively...
Kevin Engel with Peter KernanWheeler/Feynman Absorber Theory and the Radiation Arrow of TimeThe laws of physics are symmetric with respect to time, yet everyday life reveals striking asymmetries. A glass, once shattered will not spontaneously reform, and waves will always move outward from a source, never inward. What causes...
Jennifer Gilbert with Robert BrownConceptual Integration TheoryConceptual Integration Theory, otherwise known as blending, is a relatively new theory of learning having to do with “the unification of unremarkable concepts a full and perfect meaning” (Dancygier, 1). In essence, it is a holistic approach to gaining knowledge, learning everything...
Michael Gisondo with Corbin CovaultCherenkov Detector - Cherenkov Detectror for High Energy Cosmic Ray ObservationCherenkov radiation can be used to reconstruct energy and direction of high energy cosmic rays entering Earth's atmosphere. A low cost, low maintenance, durable Cherenkov detector will be designed, constructed, and tested with actual cosmic...