my internship so far
Working in the lab as a research assistant is not such a bad thing really.
In my case, I get to grind and prepare a superconductor sample, bake it for several days, polish and compress it into pellets, cut it using a saw into small thin tapes, freezing it well below zero Celcius and eventually measure its critical temperature and critical current.
I must admit that superconductor research is not really one of my fields of interest but after being at it for nearly a month, I must say that it is - like most other cutting-edge fields of research in physics - quite exciting.
It is less of a theoretical work and more of an experimental exercise actually.
There are refrigeration systems to be properly warmed up hours before the actual experiments starts, current and voltage probes to be carefully guided to touch the sample, temperature monitors to be controlled, voltmeters to be watched and data logging programs to be started.
At times, it can be quite frustrating when something goes wrong - and something is guaranteed to go wrong - and I have learnt to realize that the days when everything goes right is an exception rather than a norm.
It is true that for every single instance when everything goes well, there are 99 instances when things go amiss.
It is a slow, painful and tedious process that requires constant attention and I have taught myself to be grateful when anything worse did not happen.
However, at the very back of my mind, I often feverishly hope that that particular instance would be the blessed and sacred one - the instance when everything fits together nicely.
The experiment may not require any back-breaking Herculean effort - though it does tax one's hand-eye coordination - but the sense of repeated failures can severely test one's patience sometimes.
But I must admit the guidance, support and assistance I have been receiving from my supervisor have been enormously gratifying and comforting.
And I guess when you think of all the good things that happened to me both outside and inside the lab, this internship does in some way help pave the foundation and network for my future career.
Until then, I just need to trudge on, praying hard for that one single moment when everything falls into place.
In my case, I get to grind and prepare a superconductor sample, bake it for several days, polish and compress it into pellets, cut it using a saw into small thin tapes, freezing it well below zero Celcius and eventually measure its critical temperature and critical current.
I must admit that superconductor research is not really one of my fields of interest but after being at it for nearly a month, I must say that it is - like most other cutting-edge fields of research in physics - quite exciting.
It is less of a theoretical work and more of an experimental exercise actually.
There are refrigeration systems to be properly warmed up hours before the actual experiments starts, current and voltage probes to be carefully guided to touch the sample, temperature monitors to be controlled, voltmeters to be watched and data logging programs to be started.
At times, it can be quite frustrating when something goes wrong - and something is guaranteed to go wrong - and I have learnt to realize that the days when everything goes right is an exception rather than a norm.
It is true that for every single instance when everything goes well, there are 99 instances when things go amiss.
It is a slow, painful and tedious process that requires constant attention and I have taught myself to be grateful when anything worse did not happen.
However, at the very back of my mind, I often feverishly hope that that particular instance would be the blessed and sacred one - the instance when everything fits together nicely.
The experiment may not require any back-breaking Herculean effort - though it does tax one's hand-eye coordination - but the sense of repeated failures can severely test one's patience sometimes.
But I must admit the guidance, support and assistance I have been receiving from my supervisor have been enormously gratifying and comforting.
And I guess when you think of all the good things that happened to me both outside and inside the lab, this internship does in some way help pave the foundation and network for my future career.
Until then, I just need to trudge on, praying hard for that one single moment when everything falls into place.
posted by wanaimran at
11:22 AM
1 Comments:
Internship in a superconductor lab?
Wow! It suits your meticulousness, I think. Good experiences too.
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