PHYS 524 Fall 2025
PHYS 524 :: Physics Illinois :: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Topics covered
Unit 1: Integrated development environments (3 weeks)
- 1a. Arduino C++ programming environment (1 week);
• A C++ and Python Primer/Refresher from Physics 398DLP. - 1b. Anaconda Scientific Python (1 week).
- 1c. EAGLE schematic capture and printed circuit board layout facility (1 week);
- An EAGLE parts library; put into an external_lbrs folder, then have EAGLE open the parts you need. See also material on the Physics 523 web site about using EAGLE, under the heading "EAGLE schematic capture and PCB tools."
- Physics 371 course packet; see the material on "Schematic Capture."
Unit 2: Inter-device communication protocols and oscilloscope techniques (1 week)
- 2. I2C, SPI, the oscilloscope .
- Simple circuit to drive an I2C BME680 and an SPI BME680 from an Arduino MEGA 2560
- Sample code to run the circuit in the schematic
- Manual for the UTD2102CEX+ oscilloscope
- SparkFun tutorial: Serial Communication
- SparkFun tutorial: I2C
- SparkFun tutorial: Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI)
Unit 3: Microcontroller-interfaced sensors (4 weeks)
- 3a. Motion: acceleration, rotation, orientation (0.5 weeks);
- 3b. Proximity (0.5 weeks);
- 3c. Thermometry (0.5 weeks);
- 3d. Voltage (0.5 weeks);
- Atmel SAMD21 data sheet (section 32 is about the ADC)
- 3e. Gas and atmospheric properties: alcohol, methane, humidity, barometric pressure, volatile organics, airborne particulates (0.5 weeks)
- 3f. IR, visible, and UV illumination (0.5 weeks)
- 3g. Sound and acoustics (1 week).
Unit 4: Rapid prototyping and PCB construction (1 week)
- 4a. 3D structure modeling: TinkerCad, Cura (0.5 weeks);
- 4b. Soldering and PCB assembly (0.5 weeks).
Unit 5: Cooling and thermal management (2 weeks)
- 5.1 Some thermal regulation concepts devices and heat exchangers;
- 5.2 Monophase liquid cooling (specific heat capacity) and conduction of heat into a fluid;
- 5.3. Phase change cooling and the concept of latent heat: solid-liquid and liquid - vapor;
- 5.4. Thermodynamic cycles and the pressure-enthalpy diagram;
- 5.5 Heat pipes and Peltier devices as heat extractors;
- 5.6 Isenthalpic Joule-Thompson cooling and the vortex tube;
- 5.7 Examples from the cooling of silicon pixel and microstrip detectors in particle physics (ATLAS, CMS, LHCb);
The advance of microchannel cooling;
SWOT analysis: Global warming aspects of radiation resistant refrigerants, 'fantasy(?) fluids', restrictions, opportunities? - Cooling and thermal management notes
- Problem set
- Lecture Slides
- Lecture 1: powerpoint, pdf
- Lecture 2: powerpoint, pdf
- Lecture 3: powerpoint, pdf
- Lecture 4: powerpoint, pdf
- Lab Activities:
Unit 6: Modeling (2.5 weeks)
- 6a. Static structures and finite element analysis (1 week);
- Annotated lecture notes
- Abaqus tutorials: 2D Plane Stress, 3D Elasticity, 2d geom.cae
- 6b. Vibration analysis (0.5 weeks);
- Abaqus tutorial: Modal Analysis
- 6c. Monte Carlo techniques (1 week).