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arXiv2024

Data Science Education in Undergraduate Physics: Lessons Learned from a Community of Practice

It is becoming increasingly important that physics educators equip their students with the skills to work with data effectively. However, many educators may lack the necessary training and expertise in data science to teach these skills. To address this gap, we created the Data Science Education Community of Practice (DSECOP), bringing together graduate students and physics educators from different institutions and backgrounds to share best practices and lessons learned from integrating data science into undergraduate physics education. In this article we present insights and experiences from this community of practice, highlighting key strategies and challenges in incorporating data science into the introductory physics curriculum. Our goal is to provide guidance and inspiration to educators who seek to integrate data science into their teaching, helping to prepare the next generation of physicists for a data-driven world.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2024

Simple portable quantum key distribution for science outreach

Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) has become an essential technology in the realm of secure communication, with applications ranging from secure data transmission to quantum networks. This paper presents a simple, compact, and cost-effective setup for undergraduate tutorial demonstrations of QKD. It relies on using weak coherent pulses, which can be readily produced using an attenuated laser. The system employs the simplified three-state BB84 protocol in free space, the states are encoded using linear polarization. Polarization encoding can be done passively or actively, depending on the budget available. Time multiplexing is implemented at the receiver to reduce the number of required detectors. Only two detectors are used to implement measurements on two bases, with a total of four outcomes. The result demonstrates the practicality of the system for free-space quantum communication, and its compact and portable nature makes it particularly suitable for pedagogical demonstrations. This work paves the way for engaging undergraduate students in the field of quantum communication through hands-on laboratory projects.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2026

Canadian Physics Counts: An exploration of the diverse identities of physics students and professionals in Canada

The lack of diversity in physics remains a persistent worldwide problem. Despite being a quantitative discipline which relies on measurements to construct and validate hypotheses, there remains a paucity of data on both demographics and experiences of marginalized groups. In Canada, there has never been a nationwide assessment of those studying or working in physics. Here, we present findings from Canadian Physics Counts: the first national survey of equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) in the Canadian physics community. Our intersectional approach allowed us to gather a wealth of information on gender identity, sexual orientation, race, disability, and more. Analyses revealed key findings, including the first data on physicists who identify as non-binary or gender diverse, as well as the first data on Black and Indigenous scholars. Black physicists (1.2%) and Indigenous physicists (.3%) were found to be the most underrepresented, while White men were overrepresented across all sectors. Among respondents with a disability, 5% reported receiving full accommodations for their required needs at their place of work or study. One in four respondents from BIPOC gender diverse backgrounds identified as being disabled, and the proportion of sexually diverse students who reported having a disability was more than three times higher than the proportion of heterosexual students with a disability. The data also revealed that students represented more demographic diversity than working professionals, highlighting the importance of acting today in order to retain the diverse physicists of tomorrow. Our analysis identifies areas for intervention and offers recommendations for building a diverse and inclusive physics community in Canada that can be a global exemplar.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2024

Importance of accounting for student identities and intersectionality for creating equitable and inclusive physics learning environments

This research focuses on the experiences of seven undergraduate women who were majoring in physics in a medium-size physics department at a small liberal arts college. In the semi-structured, empathetic interviews we conducted, the women discussed how they decided to major in physics, their interactions with their peers and instructors, who supported them during their physics trajectory, and suggestions that would improve their experiences in physics. We used Standpoint theory and focused on the experiences of undergraduate women to get a holistic perspective of how they became interested in physics, how they have been supported in their physics journey as well as identify any challenges that they faced in their undergraduate physics program due to their identity. Using synergistic frameworks such as the Domains of Power and the Holistic Ecosystem for Learning Physics in an Inclusive and Equitable Environment (HELPIEE), we analyzed how those in the position of power, e.g., instructors, can play important roles in establishing and maintaining safe, equitable, and inclusive environments for students, which is especially important for historically marginalized students such as women and ethnic and racial minority students in physics. We also discuss the suggestions provided by the undergraduate women to implement in the future to support current and future undergraduate women in physics and astronomy. Their suggestions are separated as personal advice for peers and suggestions for physics instructors.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2024

How Physics Students Develop Disciplinary Computational Literacy

Computation has revolutionized science and is gradually making its way into science teaching and learning. However, we currently lack theoretical frameworks to make sense of how students learn to use computation as a disciplinary tool. In this study, we propose disciplinary computational literacy as a productive theoretical lens on this subject. This theoretical perspective views computation as a new type of literacy consisting of material, cognitive, and social elements. We argue that these elements will necessarily vary by discipline and use case studies of two pairs of students writing computational essays in an intermediate physics course to examine how disciplinary computational literacy looks and is built at an undergraduate level. Through these case studies we see the pairs leveraging the different elements of their computational literacy to both engage with and produce computational literature in their discipline, while also engaging in a process of epistemic negotiation between their interests, the course goals, available tools, and their basis of computational literacy. These cases show how computational literacy can highlight the ways in which scientific computing helps students build disciplinary understanding and also shows that computational essays, as a genre of computational literature, are a useful epistemic form for developing computational literacy.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2024

A Versatile Hong-Ou-Mandel Interference Experiment in Optical Fiber for the Undergraduate Laboratory

Hong-Ou-Mandel (HOM) interference is a quantum optics laboratory experiment that has recently become more accessible to undergraduate students. The experiment consists of two identical photons simultaneously entering a non-polarizing beam splitter. The wavefunctions destructively interfere and the photon pairs bunch (both exit the same output) at the outputs whereas classically they are equally likely to exit different outputs. Due to the precision needed to achieve indistinguishability, setup and alignment of this experiment is often considered to be too difficult and time consuming to be appropriate for an undergraduate lab, with an end goal of merely demonstrating the HOM interference dip. Here, we present an alternative optical fiber-based apparatus that gives a consistently reproducible experiment with interference occurring in a fused-fiber coupler instead of a traditional beam splitter. We use a commercially available fiber coupled biphoton source that requires minimal alignment and increases coherence length of the interference. In addition, our biphoton source provides direct temperature based control of the frequency degeneracy of the photon pairs produced, allowing for students to investigate physical properties of HOM interference such as coherence length and interference visibility. Through use of standard opto-mechanical parts combined with the commercially available fiber integrated biphoton source and laser, our apparatus is a middle ground between built-from-scratch and pre-aligned setups.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2024

Cooling of an objetct by forced convection

We present an experiment on forced convection where a previously heated object is cooled under the effect of a controlled stream of air. We consider a square copper plate in which temperature variations can be considered negligible and we measure the cooling rate as a function of the average velocity of the air stream. We use a thermal camera to measure the temperature field and the cooling curves as a function of time for different conditions. An empirical relation between the characteristic cooling time and the mean velocity of the air stream is reported. The results obtained are discussed in the framework of simple dimensional models and their limits of validity.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2024

Modeling when and how physics PhD students search for a research group: the role of interests and prior research experiences in timely group integration

Studying the factors that influence the quality of physics PhD students' doctoral experiences, especially those that motivate them to stay or leave their programs, is critical for providing them with more holistic and equitable support. Prior literature on doctoral attrition has found that students with clear research interests who establish an advisor-advisee relationship early in their graduate careers are most likely to persist. However, these trends have not been investigated in the context of physics, and the underlying reasons for why these characteristics are associated with leaving remain unstudied. Using semi-structured interviews with 40 first and second year physics PhD students, we construct a model describing the characteristic pathways that physics PhD students take while evaluating interest congruence of prospective research groups. We show how access to undergraduate research and other formative experiences helped some students narrow their interests and look for research groups before arriving to graduate school. In turn, these students reported fewer difficulties finding a group than students whose search for an advisor took place during the first year of their PhD. Lastly, we identify two characteristic types of students at a higher risk of leaving their programs: students who enter graduate school with broad interests and struggle to find a group, and students who join a research group early based on research interest alone and subsequently encounter issues with a negative mentoring relationship. This work serves as a major step toward creating a comprehensive model of how PhD students find a research group, and opens the door for future work to investigate how factors such as group culture and working environment impact the search process.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2024

Exploring Motion: Integrating Arduino in Physics Education for 21st Century Skills

In the study, analyzes were made for one-dimensional constant acceleration motion using the Arduino microcontroller and distance sensor, using the position and time values obtained for the movement of an object thrown from bottom to top until it falls to the ground. Within the scope of the study, the concepts of displacement, distance traveled, average speed and their relationships, position-time and speed-time graphs and kinematic equations were analyzed respectively. It was observed that all the results obtained from the analyzes were compatible with the theoretical results obtained using the equations. This study, in which innovative experimental activities and comprehensive analyzes for both constant acceleration motion and motion graphs and flight movements are carried out at a very low cost, has a high reproducibility potential as it contains easily accessible materials. With this type of study, it is very important and necessary to add training for 21st century skills such as material development, programming, and data analysis to physics teaching processes in the age of technology.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2024

Phenomenological Simulation of Quantum Systems

This paper describes an algorithmic system called SQT for the computer simulation of a wide class of quantum experiments on entangled particles. SQT maintains a hidden internal state for each particle and it provides an initialization process and measurement processes with visual outputs and a means of connecting these in software to make the simulator for a given experiment in Quantum Mechanics. The statistical behavior of the Quantum Mechanical system is replicated by incorporating the probabilities that are observed in real world quantum experiments. SQT is thus a tool to provide educational understanding of quantum systems and this tool removes the mystery surrounding entangled particles. It shows that only initial measurement probabilities and conditional probabilities of transition from the previous state and no earlier to the next state are sufficient inputs for the simulator to replicate all Quantum Mechanical experiments in the simulator and no other inputs such as complex numbers have to be entered into the simulator. The simulator, unlike the real world quantum system, can display the hidden sub-quantum state after which it can be seen that there is no spooky interaction between entangled particles at all. SQT therefore provides a new interpretation of quantum phenomena that may well replace the Copenhagen interpretation founded by Niels Bohr and it answers Einstein's final question regarding whether Quantum Mechanics can be considered a complete theory or not.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2024

From Fourier to Neural ODEs: Flow Matching for Modeling Complex Systems

Modeling complex systems using standard neural ordinary differential equations (NODEs) often faces some essential challenges, including high computational costs and susceptibility to local optima. To address these challenges, we propose a simulation-free framework, called Fourier NODEs (FNODEs), that effectively trains NODEs by directly matching the target vector field based on Fourier analysis. Specifically, we employ the Fourier analysis to estimate temporal and potential high-order spatial gradients from noisy observational data. We then incorporate the estimated spatial gradients as additional inputs to a neural network. Furthermore, we utilize the estimated temporal gradient as the optimization objective for the output of the neural network. Later, the trained neural network generates more data points through an ODE solver without participating in the computational graph, facilitating more accurate estimations of gradients based on Fourier analysis. These two steps form a positive feedback loop, enabling accurate dynamics modeling in our framework. Consequently, our approach outperforms state-of-the-art methods in terms of training time, dynamics prediction, and robustness. Finally, we demonstrate the superior performance of our framework using a number of representative complex systems.

cs.LG↗

arXiv2025

Breaking Barriers: Investigating Gender Dynamics in Introductory Physics Lab Classes

The persistent underrepresentation of women and other gender minorities in physical science fields has been an ongoing concern. This study investigates gender dynamics in introductory physics laboratory courses, focusing on whether students of different gender identities exhibit equal inclination and confidence in conducting lab experiments, and whether they face barriers that impact their participation. Conducted across three institutions and involving non-physics STEM students enrolled in algebra-based and calculus-based physics courses, the study found mixed results, with two institutions showing no significant gender-based differences in participation levels during lab activities, while one institution demonstrated significant differences. Chi-square tests revealed no significant association between gender and task preference or comfortability, though the small dataset suggests the need for further investigation. While quantitative analysis provided limited evidence of systematic barriers, qualitative feedback revealed that some female students experienced challenges related to gender dynamics, such as perceived assumptions about competence, being overlooked during discussions, and hesitation to voice opinions in male-dominated groups. These findings highlight the complex influence of gender and institutional factors on laboratory experiences and underscore the need for creating inclusive environments that promote equitable engagement and participation for all gender identities in STEM education.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2026

Addressing misconceptions in university physics: A review and experiences from quantum physics educators

Students often begin physics courses with misconceptions rooted in everyday experience and intuition, which can be resistant to change. While research has identified strategies for addressing misconceptions across physics, it remains unclear whether different domains, like classical and quantum physics, require different approaches. Quantum concepts can pose different representational and mathematical demands, while both domains require instructors to elicit and develop students' reasoning. To support discussion of these instructional challenges, we organize selected literature on addressing misconceptions in physics education and summarize instructors' accounts. The overview groups 122 distinct works into four categories, with further subcategories. A preliminary framework developed from existing review literature informed the interview guide. We interviewed 12 instructors from the University of Waterloo's Institute for Quantum Computing and the Perimeter Institute, who have collectively taught over 100 quantum courses. The accounts describe difficulties involving instructional representations, prerequisite knowledge, and the interpretation of students' reasoning, alongside reported diagnostic and instructional responses. We draw these accounts and the literature together as questions for instructional planning. The report does not resolve the intended classical--quantum comparison or establish comparative instructional effectiveness.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2024

Understanding student challenges with circulation and Ampère-Maxwell law

We investigated how students apply the concept of circulation when faced with problems related to the Ampere-Maxwell law. For this purpose, we designed a metacognitive pencil-and-paper question, presented it to 65 students, and analysed their responses using phenomenography. We complemented our research by conducting interviews with 12 students. The results show that students tend to think that they can only use the magnetic field circulation to calculate magnetic fields if the curve used is symmetric, and that they do not take into account the shape of the magnetic field lines when applying it. We also find that some students believe that a variable electric field must cross the entire Amperian curve in order to apply Ampére-Maxwell's law and find the magnetic field.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2025

On the time-dependent Aharonov-Bohm effect and the 4-dimensional Stokes theorem

The time-dependent Aharonov-Bohm (AB) effect considers the situation in which the magnetic flux inside the solenoid changes time-dependently. Different from the standard AB-effect, the problem is unexpectedly subtle and not easy to solve without any doubt, which is the reason why it is still in a state of unsettlement even theoretically. The difficulty originates from the fact that its theoretical analysis requires line-integrals of the time-dependent vector potential along paths in the 4-dimensional Minkowski space. Owing to the 4-dimensional Stokes theorem, this closed line-integral of the vector potential can be related to the integral of the electric and magnetic fields over the 2-dimensional area, the boundary of which is given by the above-mentioned closed path. The central controversy concerns the success or failure of the claim by Singleton and collaborators based on the 4-dimensional Stokes theorem, which states that the time-dependent part of the AB-phase shift due to the magnetic vector potential is precisely cancelled by the effect of induced electric field generated by the time-variation of the magnetic flux. In the present paper, we carefully reanalyze their cancellation argument by going back to the basic quantum mechanical analysis of the charged particle motion under the presence of the time-dependent external electromagnetic potential combined with more careful treatment of the 4-dimensional Stokes theorem. Careful analysis of the 4-dimensional Stokes theorem shows that the cancellation argument by Singleton et al. is partially correct but their central claim that only the time-independent part of the magnetic field contributes to the AB-phase shift so that there is no time-dependent AB-effect is not justified, thereby supporting likely existence of the time-dependent AB-effect.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Assisting Tibetan Students in Learning Quantum Mechanics via Mathematica

Undergraduate students of physics in Tibet have great difficulty learning quantum mechanics (QM). We attempt to use PER-based methods to help Tibetan students learn QM. In this preliminary study, we incorporate Mathematica in a QM course at Tibet University and record students' learning experiences. Tibetan students tend to have subjective feelings of learning Mathematica, whereas Han students (majority) are more focused on the operational techniques of Mathematica. The results also suggest that both Tibetan students and Han students show limited improvement in time-independent Schrodinger equations after learning QM with Mathematica. Further effort is needed to improve the academic literacy skills of physics students in Tibet.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2024

Quantum Technology masters: A shortcut to the quantum industry?

In this article, we investigate a growing trend in the worldwide Quantum Technology (QT) education landscape, that of the development of masters programs, intended to provide graduates with the knowledge and skills to take a job in the quantum industry, while serving a much shorter timeline than a doctoral degree. Through a global survey, we identified 86 masters programs, with substantial growth since 2021. Over time masters have become increasingly interdisciplinary, organised by multiple faculties or through joint degree programs, and offer more hands-on experiences such as internships in companies. Information from program organisers and websites suggests that the intended career destinations of their graduates are a diverse range of industries, and therefore masters programs may be a boon to the industrialisation of quantum technologies. Finally, we identify a range of national efforts to grow the quantum workforce of many countries, quantum program enhancements, which augment the content of existing study programs with quantum content. This may further contribute to the growth and viability of masters programs as a route to the quantum industry.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2024

Serious Game for Physics as an Active and Gamified Learning Strategy

The design of a serious game is presented that served as an instrument to motivate and aid to Physics education using active and ludic learning, specifically the topic of free fall of objects, with diverse educational purposes, first to apply a set of teaching strategies focused on promoting supervised active learning and live programming and second, providing a serious game to illustrate the notions of kinematics and simulate the dynamics of rigid bodies using a video game engine. Thanks to the use of the game engine and a holistic methodology, it was possible to help Physics students implement said serious game during a semester of an introductory Physics course.

physics.ed-ph↗