Cloud Chamber Lab Report

Ziyi Lin

March 16, 2014

1 IntroductionWhen a high velocity particle collide with another particle, it scatters into smaller,subatomic particles such as pions and muons. One confirmation of the existence ofthese subatomic particles is aurora when subatomic particles pass through the atmo-sphere, they strip away electrons from the particles on their path, temporarily ionizingthem and cause them to attract nearby particles; the gas particles gather and form vapor,refracting light and produces the beautiful colored strips on the sky. To demonstrate asimilar effect in a laboratory environment, we create a closure full of gas particles, andobserve its behavior as subatomic particles pass through it.

2 MethodologyWe will first create a boxful of gas molecules, then drastically decrease the temperaturein order to create a more visible vapor. To simplify the process, we use a highly volatileliquidalcoholto produce gas molecules, dry ice to modify the temperature, and apiece of aluminum plate to quickly transfer heat out of the container. First, we soak apiece of sponge with alcohol and secure it on the bottom of a transparent plastic box,covering it with the aluminum plate and wait for the alcohol to vaporize. Then flip thebox upside down and place it onto a layer of dry ice, then blast a strong beam of lightthrough the container and observe the effect.

3 ResultThe alcohol vapor form lines of dense vapor at a rate of about three per ten seconds.Three patterns were observed: a straight line, a Y-shaped line, and a zigzagging line.

4 Discussion

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