Virtual Laboratory
Center for Solid State Science
C. L. Churms, R. J. Culbertson, J. W. Mayer
A virtual laboratory for remote control of ion beam analysis is under development.
Advantages
- Apparatus availability not limited by geographical location --- transport costs can be minimized
- Apparatus can be utilized equally well by the physically impaired
- Experiments on expensive apparatus can be run from within a classroom environment
- Apparatus can be utilized 24 hours per day during the normal office hours of remote (world-wide) stations
- Teachers and students can monitor actual research at any time
Current State of ASU Ion Beam Virtual Laboratory
- A PC-Based data acquisition program, designed for remote access, is up and running
- Interested teachers and students can monitor current ion-beam analysis via a normal web browser over the Internet
- Users can access their acquired data on the controller PC from anywhere in the world, via the Internet
- Basic control of data acquisition possible via an Internet browser
Envisaged Future Developments
- Installation of additional hardware to enable the control of more functions
- Speed optimization of software for slow Internet links
- Implementation of simulator software with the same user interface, enabling the generation of simulated results for educational purposes
- Development of operator training software on CDROM for training of remote operators
- Preparation of introductory educational software on CDROM to stimulate classroom interest
