ERIC Number: EJ1277618
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020-Dec
Pages: 4
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0031-921X
EISSN: N/A
Measuring Wavelengths with LEGO® Bricks: "Building a Michelson Interferometer for Quantitative Experiments"
Haverkamp, Nils; Holz, Christoph; Ubben, Malte; Pusch, Alexander
Physics Teacher, v58 n9 p652-655 Dec 2020
The Michelson interferometer is one of the key experiments in modern physics when it comes to the topic of interference (Box 1). Experiments using interferometry have a high historic relevance as well as uses in current areas of research (quantum erasers, gravitational wave detection) and are used in higher education. Because of the high cost of commercial experimental sets (e.g., by Thorlabs, 3B Scientific, or PASCO), they are however not widely used in schools and are only used--if at all--in demonstration experiments. Alternatively there are several variations that have a more favorable pricing range and are still usable in experiments by students. These include a Michelson interferometer realized for example through modeling clay and microscope slides or through LEGO® bricks that can be used for a qualitative approach to interference phenomena. In addition to these variants, there are also few in favorable pricing ranges that can be used to generate quantitative experimental data.
Descriptors: Measurement Equipment, Toys, Physics, Science Experiments, Scientific Concepts, Science Instruction, Statistical Analysis
American Association of Physics Teachers. One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740. Tel: 301-209-3300; Fax: 301-209-0845; e-mail: pubs@aapt.org; Web site: http://aapt.scitation.org/journal/pte
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A