INTRODUCTION TO PHOTONICS: PART 1 and PART 2
An Online Course for Educators
Supplies and Equipment for the Hands-On Activities
Hands on activities are an important part of this course. It's hard to imagine learning optics without actually seeing what the text describes! If you have a PHOTON or PHOTON2 lab kit available, you can use the laboratory experiments written for the kit. These instructions can be modified if you have access to a well-stocked physics laboratory. Even if you have no equipment on hand, you can still participate by setting up a "home lab", using an Optics Discovery Kit, available from Edmund Optics, plus a laser pointer, a small flashlight, and supplies from around the house.
The table below lists 1) the equipment used in the PHOTON/PHOTON2 kit, 2) equivalent equipment from a physics lab, where available and 3) what you'd need to do a similar experiment "at home." Some of the equipment in the PHOTON/PHOTON2 kit is not usually found in a physics lab, and most of the physics lab equipment isn't usually "around the house." Nonetheless, everyone will be able to participate in the hands on activities, using what you have available. Units 1-3 are covered in Part I, Units 4-6 are covered in Part II.
| Unit | PHOTON/PHOTON2 KIT* |
TYPICAL PHYSICS LAB EQUIPMENT | OPTICS DISCOVERY KIT AND "KITCHEN PHYSICS" Supplies |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Project STAR Spectrometer or CENCO Spectrometer | Any prism or grating spectrometer | CD or diffraction grating, cardboard tube and foil |
| 2 | Ray box and acrylic prism shapes, protractor | Ray box or laser and block of glass or plastic with straight sides, protractor | Laser pointer and Jello® Jigglers , protractor |
| 3 | Ray box target, posts and post holders, lens holder, lens with f~10 cm, tilt table support, meter stick | Lens and lens holder, light bulb or other object for lens, supports for components, meter stick | Lens A from OSA kit, flashlight, clothespins for support, meter stick |
| 4A | Laser and 2-slit slide, supports for components, ruler and meter stick Alternate: Diffraction grating slide |
Laser or laser pointer and double slit slide, supports, ruler and meter stick Alternate: Diffraction grating |
N/A
|
| 4B | Michelson interferometer: posts and post holders, front surface mounted mirrors, laser, beam splitter, beam splitter support, laser tilt table Alternate: Interference plates |
Michelson interferometer apparatus
Alternate: Interference plates or microscope slides |
N/A
Microscope slides if available |
| 4C | Laser pointer | Laser pointer | Laser pointer |
| 5 | Polarizer, rotational mount, posts and post holders, laser with polarized output on tilt table, power meter
|
Polarizers (2 if light source is not polarized), light source or laser, protractor or other means to measure rotation angle of polarizer, light meter Alternate: Two linear polarizers, pieces of tape, cellophane, plastic, etc |
N/A
Two linear polarizers, pieces of tape, cellophane, plastic, etc |
| 6 | Laser and flashlight, meter stick, ruler Alternate: Laser, enlarged "bar code", power meter Alternate: Laser on tilt table, beam splitter on support, posts and post holders, rotational stage, mounted first surface mirror |
Laser and flashlight, meter stick, ruler Alternate: Laser, enlarged "bar code", light meter N/A |
Laser and flashlight, meter stick, ruler N/A N/A |
*Photos of the PHOTON2 kit are here. The PHOTON kit is similar. For information on the kit, contact Fenna Hanes at the New England Board of Higher Education, fhanes@nebhe.org