NOAA's Ark
Team members:
- Adam Ornstein
- Troy Owens
- Dmitriy Polyakov
- Michael Tanksalava
- John Trytko
Our Capstone project will entail creating an Open Cavity Phase Shift Cavity Ringdown instrument in conjunction with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). A Phase Shift Cavity Ringdown instrument uses a laser reflecting between two mirrors to determine properties of the medium through which it is propagating. By measuring the phase shift of the laser through the cavity relative to the initial phase, the instrument can discriminate between different mediums, such as air, nitrogen, smoke, aerosol particles, etc. The instrument should be able to measure and record a phase shift, be able to align its internal optics, and should be compact, portable, and easy to use. This instrument will be used to measure density of aerosol particles, such as pollution, or as a reference for the calibration of other instruments.