Math and CS major
and Math major
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We started work this summer on Tuesday, 29 May 2007. We ended on 3 August.
This summer, we...
Meet the Molbeamers:
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Math and CS major |
and Math major |
SUMMARIES
Charlie:
The second year on the molbeam was very different from the first. The largest immediate difference was that I did not have to spend the first few weeks learning what the project was about. In fact, this summer I had a minimal involvement with the actual molecular beam experiment.
Last summer I spent a lot of time getting familiar with the programming aspect of the job but still kept up with the developments as far as data went. This year all I really did on that front was steal a data set every once in a while just to make sure I hadn't destroyed the fitting routine. Surprisingly, I never messed it up too badly.
Originally, the plan for this summer had been to create a new simulate, using linefit as a guide. However, things changed a lot. A number of smaller projects came up, and I chose to take the time to implement the small changes so that Bjorn could use them immediately. Additionally, the fitting functions (which are destined to become the simulation functions) are a lot deeper than I anticipated.
A lot of time was spent wading through thousands of lines of code in both MathCad and C++ trying to map out a plan of action. I spent time inspecting linefit to figure out how the fitting happens, then looked over at the surrent simulate to see how MathCad does it without an input of read data. Furthermore, there is a lot of functionality in Visual C++ that I had never been exposed to. I spent more time than I would like to admit going through John's half-dozen manuals trying to figure things out, only to get stumped by a new problem as soon as I found the answer to anything.
When I couldn't stand looking at code anymore, I would browse through the blue quantum book and try to get a better understanding of what it is we're dealing with. Professor Cederberg has said that you never really understand one quantum class until you're taking the next one and I agree entirely. Not much stuck with me from this book, but my comfort with the Modern topics is much higher.
The work on the software did not really go as originally planned, but some things were accomplished and I certainly learned a lot about C++, the MFC libraries and about the physics working under the hood in the beam. It remains to be seen how much I'll be able to do during the school year, but my work for the future is cut out for me.
Bjorn:
When I arrived at the beginning of the summer to work on the molecular beam, I was greeted with a three-day crash course in everything one could possibly wish to know about the beam, from how the pumps work to what to do in the case of a leaking pipe, and of course how to fit data. Having experienced the obligatory shock, I spent the rest of the summer fully absorbing this material through daily use. No, none of the pipes leaked... but we did have a couple power failures.
After getting oriented, I went directly into working on improving our fit for the potassium 39 isotopomer of KI, a process that involved wading through old data, choosing what data was worth running, taking guesses with first fit parameters, and braving the near-subKelvin temperatures of the advanced lab. While at the times it got repetitive or I got lost, the other physics students were good at spicing things up, and Dr. Cederberg was extremely helpful (not to mention instructive and knowledgeable)! All in all, we ended the summer with exciting results... we added at least two more meaningful parameters to the eQq of iodine, fit the spectrum of KI with a chi of 1.3!
If I had to do it again, (and I do...next year), I would spend a lot more time trying to learn new things, and less time mindlessly waiting for Linefit to "Pre-fit Rabi Lineshape"s. This should be easier when I return with a more rigorous background in Quantum Mechanics and E&M. Despite my deficiencies, Dr. Cederberg and Charlie put up with my myriad questions, and made for a great research group. It is to them (and with the obligatory reference to the grant providers) that I address my thanks for this great summer.