Lab Instructor

• Gary Miers
  • Searles 316C (teaching on-line from home)
  • x3506
  • [email protected]

Welcome to the Physics 1140 Laboratory!

Lab is an opportunity to explore new concepts and to learn a little about techniques in experimental physics. This semester is going to be especially fun because you will be doing Lab remotely at home or in your dorm room.  Hopefully you have received (or will be receiving) your Lab Kit which contains all of the equipment needed to perform the Labs.  Open the following link to see an inventory of what is contained in your Lab Kit  Lab Kit Inventory.

Lab Write-up Templates

The lab manual is full of questions for you to answer, both qualitative and quantitative. The Lab Write-Up Template is where you record your observations, comments, etc., along with the answers to the questions.   For each Lab you will be provided with a “Write-Up” Template that will be available in Blackboard as a Word file and pdf file.  You may simply fill it in and return it through Blackboard.  The Write-Up Template will provide space for you to include the following:

• Lab title and date, along with a place to put your lab partner’s name (if applicable).
• Purpose. This can be brief (one sentence) and should be obvious from reading the manual.
• Experimental Plan. A brief overview of lab that includes a simple sketch of the setup (with equipment and appropriate variables labeled where possible), and a list of the key equation(s).

Most Labs have questions for you to answer, both qualitative and quantitative.  Make sure you read the Lab Manual carefully so that you do not skip any questions.  Please try to answer the qualitative questions with concise complete sentences, or a paragraph as necessary.  These questions are usually trying to test your conceptual understanding, or trying to provoke a certain line of thought. For the quantitative work follow the following suggestions.

• Record data in clearly labeled tables with appropriate column headings and units.
• Graphing suggestions:
  • Graph neatly, using a pencil and a ruler when constructing a graph by hand. The first two labs will require handmade graphs, and computer-assisted graphing will be allowed later if proficiency with graphs is shown.
  • Graph size: close to a full 8.5 x 11 page, determined primarily by the convenience of axis units per grid mark (see the next point)
  • Use the printed graph paper grids to make plotting and reading your graph easy – units like 1, 2, or 5 times the appropriate power of ten are best for judging where to plot your data accurately between grid lines.
  • Circle and dot all points used to calculate slopes.
• Calculations and Analysis:
  • Show all formulae algebraically in variable form and solve for the unknown variable.  Once you have solved the equation in algebraic form, replace the appropriate variables with their known values and units and solve the equation making sure to include the units with the final answer.  Only one sample calculation is needed for repeated calculations.
  • Include uncertainty analysis when appropriate.
• Compare your results with known values, if available.  Think about whether your results make sense.  If they don’t, try to determine why they don’t.

Two seemingly minor things that are frequently overlooked, but which are very important for the clarity of your notebook entry, are significant figures and units (all values with units must have them, or the numbers are physically meaningless). The value of these two things in the grading scheme will become increasingly important as the semester continues, so please start good habits early!