Modern Physics Laboratory for Instrumentation Program

当今的物理学毕业生，以学士学位开始他们的职业生涯，其中一个弱点是缺乏适当的研究和沟通技巧以及使用现代科学设备的经验。认识到这一弱点，本项目着重于在我们的物理学学士学位课程中整合探究式学习，并强调仪器仪表。在这个项目中，学生需要参加高级仪器课程，包括在学院实验室的研究经验。该计划填补了入门物理实验室教授的低级技能与仪器课程所需的更高级研究技能之间的空白。对文献的回顾表明，以探究为基础的实验室方法可以为学生提供学习必要研究技能的机会。多个nsf资助的项目已经在光谱学、现代物理学和材料科学方面建立了实验室，这些项目是该项目适应和实施工作的基础。这些项目的元素被整合到一个学期的课程中，学生在三个广泛的兴趣领域工作：1)干扰，2)光谱学，3)材料科学。这个现代物理实验室结合了对物理概念的理论掌握和对使用现代科学设备和使用探究方法解决研究问题所需技能的实际掌握。具体地说，在对技术、相关文献和可用设备进行指导介绍后，学生负责开发他们自己关于该主题的研究问题。这需要研究文献并为这三个项目撰写简短的建议。每个项目的时间安排允许学生根据收到的结果灵活地改变他们提出的程序。在每个专题结束时，学生提交书面报告，并在学期结束时选择一个专题作为研讨会报告。本课程的有效性是通过几个机制来评估的：学生调查，学生课程作业分析，雇主调查来评估课程的长期效果。

One of the weaknesses of present day physics graduates, beginning their professional career with a bachelor's degree, is a lack of appropriate research and communication skills and experience with modern scientific equipment. Identifying this weakness, this project focuses on integrating inquiry-based learning in our bachelor degree program in physics with an emphasis on Instrumentation. In this program, the students are required to take an upper-level instrumentation course involving a research experience in faculty laboratories. The program fills the gap between the low-level skills taught in the introductory physics labs and the more advanced research skills needed in the Instrumentation Course. A review of the literature makes apparent that inquiry-based approach to the laboratories can provide the students the opportunity to learn necessary research skills. Multiple NSF-funded projects that have developed laboratories in spectroscopy, modern physics, and material science are the basis of the adaptation and implementation efforts in this project. Elements of these projects are incorporated into a single semester course where the students work in three broad areas of interest: 1)interference, 2) spectroscopy, and 3) materials science. This modern physics lab combines theoretical mastery of physical concepts with practical mastery of the skills necessary to work with modern scientific equipment and solve research problems using an inquiry approach. Specifically, after a guided introduction to the techniques, relevant literature, and available equipment, the students are responsible for developing their own research problems concerning the topic. This requires researching the literature and writing brief proposals for the three projects. The time scheduled for each project allows the students flexibility to change their proposed procedures dependent on the incoming results. At the end of each project the students submit written reports, and at the end of the semester they select one project for a seminar presentation. The effectiveness of this course is evaluated through several mechanisms: student surveys, analysis of the students' coursework, surveys of employers to evaluate the long-term effect of the course.