Photonics Society at UCSB
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  • Home
  • Members
    • Alumni
  • Calendar
  • Events
    • Lectures >
      • Industry Perspective Lectures
      • IPS Lectures
      • Student Lectures
      • Alumni Lectures
      • OSA Lectures
    • Outreach Events
    • Women in Photonics Week >
      • WIPW 2019
      • WiPW 2018
      • WiPW 2017
      • WiPW 2016
    • Light Science Workshop >
      • Light Science 2018
      • Light Science 2017
    • Day of Light >
      • Day of Light 2019
      • 2015 Symposium
    • Banquet >
      • Banquet 2022
      • Banquet 2019
      • Banquet 2016
      • Banquet 2014
    • QIS >
      • QIS2022
      • QIS2021
    • Social Events
    • Sign-up for Student Talks
  • Education
    • Education Home
    • After-School Science >
      • Light-Pipes: Controlling Light
      • DIY Holograms
      • Color Mixing
      • LaserComm
      • Fluorescence
    • Classes
    • Outreach Events
    • Outreach Kits 2020
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LaserComm: Sending Music With Light!

​This activity was originally developed back in 2017 by the PhoSoc Outreach team members Eric J. Stanton, Victoria Rosborough and Takako Hirokawa as a hands-on activity for high school students, in which students made their own laser-communications transceiver. 

Updated "Light & Sound" LaserComm for MOXI Science Museum

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In the summer of 2019 we worked with Sam Shaw at the MOXI Wolf Science Museum to hold a pilot workshop to test out the PhoSoc LaserComm activity with local kids and families. 
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The newly revised activity uses laser cut components, printed circuit boards and 3D Printed mounts to allow museum visitors to focus entirely on manipulating light.  

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​We made all the components fit onto a peg-board, which has tall sides to prevent stray laser light and allow kids to see where the light is going. The activity includes the following components:
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  • Red-Laser & White-LED transmitters that send music from a connected iPad/iPod. Powered by USB adaptors.
  • Solar-Cell Receivers hooked up to portable speakers for immediate audible feedback.
  • Mirrors mounted to pegs (One with a plastic coat to diffuse the light)
  • Tape on Plexiglass acting as optical diffuser
  • Three different glass lenses mounted to flat bases
  • Bent Plastic Lucite “Guide” mounted to flat base
  • 3 tall Walls on pegs, to make a “challenge” where visitors have to get the light to reach a detector behind the Wall. 
  • Small Bucket of Dry Ice in Water for making beams visible. 

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Made possible by generous support from Praevium Research Inc.
Download a brief writeup of the whole activity at this link on the right →
moxi_lasercomm_-_light_and_sound_-_2019_v2.pdf
File Size: 2608 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

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The final setup, as deployed at the MOXI Science Museum's first Scientist Interactive Event!

Original "LaserComm" Activity for UCSB School of Scientific Thought

PhoSoc Outreach team members Eric J. Stanton, Victoria Rosborough and Takako Hirokawa developed this activity for one of the summer classes they taught as part of CSEP's School for Scientific Thought.  Highschoolers in the program built circuits that operated as optical transmitters of audio, and photodetectors plugged into headphones to receive the audio signal.

​The short activity allows the students to optically transmit music (from a smartphone, for example) via an LED or Laser, and receive it to listen on headphones. Students can compare the use of an LED/laser and optical fiber/free-space by simply listening to the received audio quality!

This activity is based on Simon Field’s plans at sci-toys.com: Simple laser communicator

Downloads for 2016-2017 LaserComm SST Activities:

sst_lasercomm_build_instructions_-_2017.pdf
File Size: 797 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

sst_class_1_-_physics_of_lasers_and_light_-_small.pdf
File Size: 4855 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

ofc_2017_lasercomm_flyer_-_materials_and_procedure.pdf
File Size: 565 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

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