arXiv subjects

Julien Bobroff

Publications and source records attributed to Julien Bobroff.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2023

Teaching Physics in the Woods

We developed a two-day physics class that uses a nearby forest as a teaching location. Using low-cost material, students design and carry out physics projects outside of the usual controlled environment that is a classroom. In this way they come to realize that physics can be used to understand the real world. They organize and present their results in an original format, an exhibit they collectively build. This project is an introduction to the role physics can play in exploring environmental issues, incorporating a sensitive and positive aspect which is important in this time of environmental crisis.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2021

A training programme for early-stage researchers that focuses on developing personal science outreach portfolios

Development of outreach skills is critical for researchers when communicating their work to non-expert audiences. However, due to the lack of formal training, researchers are typically unaware of the benefits of outreach training and often under-prioritize outreach. We present a training programme conducted with an international network of PhD students in quantum physics, which focused on developing outreach skills and an understanding of the associated professional benefits by creating an outreach portfolio consisting of a range of implementable outreach products. We describe our approach, assess the impact, and provide a list of guidelines for designing similar programmes across scientific disciplines in the future.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2020

61 ways to measure the height of a building: an introduction to experimental practices

We created an introductory physics activity for undergrad students consisting in measuring by different methods the same physical quantity. It allows to confront students with questions of uncertainty, precision, and model versus theory. The aim was to measure the height of a building using only a smartphone and everyday low-cost equipment. We designed 61 methods to do so and tested most of them. These methods can be implemented in various pedagogical scenarios, engaging students into a concrete task, outside of the lab, easily set up at almost zero cost.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2017

A study on kinetic friction: the Timoshenko oscillator

Friction is a complex phenomenon that is of paramount importance in everyday life. We present an easy-to-build and inexpensive experiment illustrating Coulomb's law of kinetic friction. The so-called friction, or Timoshenko, oscillator consists of a plate set into periodic motion through the competition between gravity and friction on its rotating supports. The period of such an oscillator gives a measurement of the coefficient of kinetic friction μ_k between the plate and the supports. Our prototype is mainly composed of a motor, LEGO blocks, and a low-cost microcontroller, but despite its simplicity the results obtained are in good agreement with values of μ_k found in the literature.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2016

A project-based course about outreach in a physics curriculum

We describe an undergraduate course where physics students are asked to conceive an outreach project of their own. The course alternates between the project conception and teachings about pedagogy and outreach, and ends in a public show. We describe its practical implementation and benefits. Through a student survey and an analysis of their projects, we discuss the merits and flaws of this "learning-by-doing" teaching approach for physics.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2012

Nanoscale textured superconductivity in Ru-substituted BaFe2As2 : a challenge to a universal phase diagram for the pnictides

75As NMR experiments were performed in Ba(Fe1-xRux)2As2 for x=0 to 80%. Magnetic fractions and NMR lineshapes demonstrate that Ru substitution destroys the antiferromagnetic (AF) order inhomogeneously with a magnetic moment distributed from 0.9 to 0 uB. Superconductivity emerges at intermediate Ru doping and coexists with AF order only in the regions where moments are smaller than ~0.3uB, resulting in an original nanoscale texture. This situation contrasts with that of Co substitution, challenging the apparent universality of the phase diagram in Fe-based superconductors.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2008

Large Seebeck coefficients in Iron-oxypnictides : a new route towards n-type thermoelectric materials

The iron-oxypnictide compounds, recently reported as a new class of superconductors when appropriately doped, exhibit large Seebeck coefficients, of the order of -100 microV/K, while keeping good electrical conductivity. Their power factor shows a peak at low temperatures, suggesting possible applications of these materials in thermoelectric cooling modules in the liquid nitrogen temperature range.

cond-mat.supr-con↗