Use this tag for questions pertaining to the limits, management, and operation of equipment necessary to experimental physics. This tag is not intended for "does this thing I heard about actually work" type questions.
Questions tagged [experimental-technology]
149 questions
16
votes
2 answers
How is time measured in particle experiments?
I was reading about the half life measurements and was curious to understand the experimental setups that allows so minute measurements to be captured. Specifically looking into half life of Higgs boson. I am looking to understand one example method…
Sohail Khan
- 295
16
votes
1 answer
Are the Voyager probes still sending us a signal ?
This article reported today, a finding from one of the voyager probes. It talks about magnetic structures at the (far) outer edge of our solar system. Does that mean we're still able to pick up a signal from the Voyager probes ? And how long does it…
giulio
14
votes
3 answers
Why and how will we be able to image extraterrestrial planets in the next two decades?
According to a recently published article, a well-established Cambridge astrophysicist stated that:
the “origin of life, where it exists, and whether aliens exist,
is going to be crucial over the next four decades”. He added: “We know
now that…
ixtmixilix
- 494
12
votes
4 answers
Could we use particle colliders as fusion generators?
So I know the basic gist is that fusion power's main issue is sustaining the fusion. I also know that there are two methods. The Torus method and the laser method. The torus magnetically contains plasma and heats it with radiation and accelerates…
QEntanglement
- 3,941
12
votes
1 answer
How much can we currently squeeze light?
In quantum optics, the single-mode squeezed vacuum is the state
$$\hat S(z)|0\rangle=\exp\left(\frac{1}{2}\left(z^*\hat a_{\mathbf k}^2-z\hat a_{\mathbf k}^{\dagger 2}\right)\right)|0\rangle$$
where $z=re^{i\theta}$ is a complex number, $\hat…
Petar Simidzija
- 123
11
votes
1 answer
How do non-mechanical solid-state optical switches work?
I am currently looking for a fiber-optical switch (FOS) in order to be able to change the light source of a spectrometer. As this will be used in harsh conditions, I was hoping to find a FOS with no moving parts.
Today I came across this, which…
huhnmonster
- 213
11
votes
1 answer
How can I make a dry dilution refrigerator quiet?
The pulse tubes are really loud.
We've wrapped the helium lines in sound absorbing foam, and we have a cage around the top of the cryostat also lined with foam, but it's still pretty loud.
To make this an interesting physics question I ask: how is…
DanielSank
- 25,766
10
votes
2 answers
Are these plastic scintillators still usable?
I am working on a project to create and launch a weather balloon with a particle detector system attached to it to measure muon flux at different altitudes. The previous project lead decided to drill holes in all of our plastic scintillators so we…
a.frieb
- 103
10
votes
2 answers
Methods to stabilize and maintain extremely low humidity in a lab environment
My atomic physics lab is in a building that experiences huge swings in humidity levels during the year due to the monsoon season
Our building provides temperature, but not humidity control. Using just the building temperature control results in the…
Joe
- 1,177
10
votes
2 answers
Is Thibado’s Graphene Brownian Capacitor Charger Perpetual Motion of the Second Kind?
In Fluctuation-induced current from freestanding graphene (peer-reviewed version on Phys. Rev. E, note: behind a paywall) Thiabado, et al, report the extraction of work from brownian motion. The experimental set up involves graphene in close but…
James Bowery
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9
votes
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Ice bath is always 3C, why?
I've always learned that a mixture of ice and water should reach equilibrium at approximately 0C. I've actually tried to create that a number of times in different contexts and always fail.
First, an ice bath in a plastic container. I get 3C,…
Dov
- 1,035
8
votes
1 answer
Mirrors and light beam divergence technology limits
There are many applications for orbital space mirrors in astronomy (better telescopes) and space propulsion (solar power for deep space probes), but this is limited by the minimum beam divergence achievable with current technology
So, i'm trying to…
lurscher
- 14,933
7
votes
1 answer
How strong must a signal be at the edge of the Solar System to penetrate into the Sytem?
A sort-of follow-up to Are the Voyager probes still sending us a signal ?
Still following on the news report referenced in the above question, this report indicates further magnetic surprises at, or near to, the interface of Sol's family with the…
Everyone
- 4,741
6
votes
1 answer
How much power does it take to maintain the high vacuums in advanced physics experiments?
The LIGO Gravitational-Wave Observatory and CERNs Large Hadron Collider both have some impressive ultra-high vacuum systems. For my project proposal I need to demonstrate some understanding of how much power it takes (in practice) to maintain an…
phil1008
- 283
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6
votes
2 answers
Accuracy of various optical instruments
I understand that this may not be the type of question allowed here, but I'm not sure. Feel free to close this if you feel that it shouldn't be here
I'm planning on carrying out a certain set of experiments regarding quantum mechanics and…
Manishearth
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