On the afternoon of Tuesday, June 30, the EIL students had their final laboratory experiences at the Diamond. Twelve of the thirty-two students gained some experience in a cleanroom while the remainder of the students were to conduct experiments using virtual or augmented reality (VR/AR) headsets in the Structures Laboratory at the Diamond.
In the Structures Laboratory, EIL students were able to collect and analyze data for a variety of simulated environments for problems in beam analysis and computational fluid dynamics (CFD). In the CFD simulation, for example, the students used an AR wand to i.) measure the freestream velocity, ii.) observe the velocity magnitude, and iii.) describe the pressure fields around a sphere. They were then required to calculate the Reynolds number, and identify the specific fluid dynamic regime for five different simulations. This particular laboratory assignment was designed by Dr. Krys Bangert, Technical Team Lead in Materials, Biological and Chemical Engineering at the Diamond. The students were also provided various gaming simulations to engage with during the laboratory period.
In the Clean Room, the EIL students were exposed to a range of microfabrication techniques. The space is one hundred times cleaner than the air outside and has
controlled access, with pressurization, humidity and temperature control
to prevent contamination. Students are able to produce and test devices at a
scale smaller than a living cell and only visible with the most powerful
of microscopes. It is a facility that is crucial in providing students with the kind
of hands-on experience required to work in this remarkable field of micro-scale engineering. Special appreciation is extended to Dr. Mohammed Asadullah Khan, University Teaching Associate, who guided the EIL students through the various experiments in the Clean Room.
