60th Annual Report on Research 2015

During the period July 2014 – Aug 2015 I initially planned to finish building my instrument and begin taking scientifically useful data.  However, in late February 2015, a water pipe burst in the attic of the building where my laboratory was housed, leading to the flooding of my laboratory.  Nearly all of the equipment was deemed destroyed by the insurance company, and happily the replacement of all major equipment was completed by September 2015.

The instrument broadly consists of

1.     The core electrodynamic balance (EDB) apparatus, including power supplies, to trap the particle

2.     Various devices for visual and spectroscopic characterization of the particle

3.     A mixing system to supply gases to the core apparatus


4.     A means of controlling the temperature of the core apparatus


5.     Command and control software

 At the time of the flood, subsystem 1 was fully functional, subsystems 2 and 3 were in progress, and systems 4 and 5 were not yet begun. At the time of the flood, senior mechanical engineering student Tenzin Youdon had completed a working prototype for the humidified source of gas that is fed into the EDB vessel. She had performed basic characterization of the gas source, and was working towards adding the ability to control the temperature of the gas stream. Unfortunately, the equipment needed to mix gases and control gas flows was heavily damaged by water and was ruined. The prototype gas handling system was Tenzin Youdon's primary project throughout the Winter 2015 term.  In the spring 2015 term, Tenzin continued to work on the humidifier and assisted in the rebuilding of the instrument.  She gained significant experience in troubleshooting instrumentation and in project planning as she and I worked through replacing or repairing the instrumentation, and completed her senior thesis in June 2015.

In the summer of 2015, I hired two students, a rising senior electrical engineer and a rising sophomore biochemist, to assist me in rebuilding the instrument.  The electrical engineer was given freedom to work on whatever part of the project he found interesting (I did the rest!) and among his many subprojects, he chose to learn how to lay out printed circuit boards. This is an experience that most other students, even in the electrical engineering department, have not had. He worked on a variety of projects related to electronics and mechatronics for the laboratory equipment.

The sophomore student worked closely with me in a role most like an apprentice. As the summer continued, he developed into a skilled and careful laser operator, able to complete some of the more difficult alignments. He continues to work in my lab this year, and is considering applying for an internal fellowship from Union College based on the work that he is doing in my lab.

As of this writing (late September 2015) I am sorry to report that I have not taken any publishable measurements with my instrument.  However, my students have gained valuable experience in working on a research project including persevering through adversity, and some have discovered new interests as the result of the rebuilding work they have done.  During the reporting period, this project has resulted in an undergraduate thesis, one oral presentation, and three poster presentations at Union College symposia.

I am very pleased to report that subsystems 1, 2, and 3 are all functioning as of this writing, and subsystem 5 (the command and control software) is nearly complete.  I am very hopeful that some useful, publishable data will be collected by the beginning of the 2016 calendar year.