Among the myriad of renewable energy sources present in nature, solar energy is regarded as one of the most promising sources because of its abundance. To date, the field of commercial photovoltaics is dominated by conventional inorganic semiconductor technologies like silicon because of their relatively high efficiencies. Read More…
The speed of modern computing algorithms is limited by the basic operations allowed by classical physics. With the advent of quantum computing, there could be faster and more unique methods to solve a variety of problems. In order to create a quantum computer, liquid nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy can be utilized. Read More…
Dye-sensitized solar cells are considered one of the most promising advancements in alternative energy. They are cheap, easy to make, and considerably efficient. Efficiencies are the key area of interest in our research, and we worked with the formula and creation of the Titanium Dioxide paste as the key method. Read More…
Complex (dusty) plasmas are found in many natural and man-made environments such as Saturn’s rings, comets, and semiconductor manufacturing. I conducted experiments to study the equilibrium structure of small three-dimensional complex plasma clusters inside a chamber filled with argon at low pressure. Read More…
When light strikes cadmium selenimide nanocrystals (quantum dots), electron hole pairs are produced. The excited electrons can create a current in thin-layer titanium dioxide solar cells. Read More…
There are some medical conditions that are electrical in nature, for example, in the heart or brain. Treating these conditions involve localizing and identifying the part of the heart (or brain) which behaves erratically without having to cut open the patients. Read More…
In this presentation we will be building a modified Geiger counter to detect cosmic muons and will be directly measuring the average muon density or flux on the earth’s surface and at varying altitudes. Read More…
String theory offers a solution to the long sought after grand theory of everything in physics. Essentially what it says is that all particles which we now know of and those which have not yet been observed are all made up of tiny vibrating strings. Read More…
This past summer, Cornell’s continuing research into dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) saw many improvements. The record efficiency produced by this program climbed to 3.5%. This leap in efficiency can be attributed to newly developed fabrication procedures as well as new and improved measurements. Read More…
My project was on the terahertz spectroscopy of undoped, tin doped and indium doped CdSe Quantum dots. Read More…
Last summer we expanded on the ongoing project of the Physics Department of developing, fabricating, and testing Dye Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs). Read More…
The goal of this research was to study what factors affect the dimension of a copper fractal. Read More…
Amateur astronomers are making great contributions to the detection and monitoring of extrasolar planets, which are planets orbiting stars other than our own sun. Read More…
The submillimeter wavelength band of the electromagnetic spectrum is the last unexplored territory of ground-based astronomy. Read More…
My work took previously gathered wind speed, direction, temperature, and pressure data collected in the Mount Vernon area and input it into a database. Read More…
We experimented with wireless power transmission. Using copper coils, power can be transmitted several feet in all directions efficiently. Read More…
We are conducting an investigation of the relationship between infrared Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) emission and radio emission of atomic hydrogen (HI) to explore the interaction between star formation and the ISM. Read More…
Dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) offer a cheaper, more easily mass-produced alternative to silicon cells. Such cells are made from thin sandwiched layers of conductive glass, titanium dioxide, dye, and an iodide electrolyte. Our goal was to construct and test our own DSSCs. Read More…
The Foucault Pendulum is arguably one of the most beautiful demonstrations in physics. As the pendulum swings, the earth rotates underneath. Read More…
The ruby laser is a pulse laser with a very short pulse (a few nanoseconds) allowing us to make holograms of less stationary objects. Read More…
In my presentation I will explain how lasers work, starting with the simple aspects including atoms, energy levels, and photons. I will then go into details about how I built my laser and different aspects that are important including a high voltage power supply, smooth electrodes, and an extremely fast discharge path. Read More…
This project entailed assembling solar cells which use dyes to convert light into electrical energy and then experimenting with these cells to determine their efficiencies. Read More…
This summer, I worked at the University of Florida learning how to design and construct robots. A robot is an autonomous machine that detects and responds to external stimuli in a way that simulates intelligent behaviors. Read More…
Johnson Noise is electrical noise found across a resistor when no current is present. Johnson Noise occurs due to the thermal fluctuations affecting the metal in the resistor. Read More…
86% of the energy produced in Iowa comes from burning coal, producing carbon dioxide, sulfuric acid, and other environmentally unfriendly by-products. Read More…
86% of the energy produced in Iowa comes from burning coal, producing carbon dioxide, sulfuric acid, and other environmentally unfriendly by-products. Iowa, being the tenth windiest state, has the capability of producing 4.8 times its annual energy consumption through wind power. Read More…
Virtual CPU: Recipe for a computer – The presenter has written a Java program that models the workings of a Central Processing Unit – the brain of the computer. Read More…
Alan Turing introduced the Turing machine in 1936. All classical computers are Turing machines, and are thus limited to problems that Turing machines can solve. Read More…
In any scientific research there may be great leaps forward, but perhaps more often there are setbacks, a slow crawl of progression, and unexpected discoveries that send research into entirely new directions. Read More…
In any scientific research there may be great leaps forward, but perhaps more often there are setbacks, a slow crawl of progression, and unexpected discoveries that send research into entirely new directions. Read More…
Automobiles with electric motors powered by batteries have much lower emissions of pollutants and carbon dioxide than conventional internal combustion engines. Read More…
Devonian age strata exposed in east-central Iowa preserve coral-rich biostromes and bioherms. Read More…
Chaos theory, initially started in the 19th century by the French mathematician Henri Poincare and later realized by Lorenz, Feigenbaum and others, describes a system that is non-random and deterministic. Read More…
Single Bubble Sonoluminescence (SBSL) or Synchronous Sonoluminescence is simply producing light from sound. In essence, SBSL is a process of using sine waves to vibrate an air bubble within a flask of water at resonant frequency. Read More…