Title slide
Implementing LabVIEW in an
Intermediate Physics Laboratory
Steven Sahyun
Physics Department,
University of Wisconsin - Whitewater,
Whitewater, Wisconsin 53190
sahyuns@uww.edu
AAPT Greensboro
August 1, 2007
FH03
Supported in part by a National Instruments equipment grant.
Equipment
Students worked in pairs for three weeks at a computer workstation equipped with a
computer and a National Instruments NI-6009 USB interface unit. Each computer
had LabVIEW 8.2 installed.
A department site license was acquired through a National Instruments grant.
University (College Dean) provided funds to purchase NI-6009 USB interface units
for the laboratories. Small supplementary items (LEDs, photocells, motors) were
purchased from Radio Shack with instructional funds.
NI USB-6009
14-Bit, 48 kS/s Multifunction Data for USB
Analog: 8 input, 2 output channels,
Digital: 4 input, 8 output. ($243/ea)
Sophomore Level Intermediate Laboratory course: 2 cr.; 4 hr/week
Lab Station 1: Computer Interfacing. (3 Weeks)
Students learn basics of LabVIEW programming to acquire data and control devices.
Student groups then rotate through the following lab stations
Lab Station 2:
Electron properties.
(2 Weeks)
•Helmholtz coil field
mapping.
•e/m ratio
•Millikan Oil Drop
Lab Station 3:
Magnetism
(2 Weeks)
Magnetic dipole
moment and torque
experiments and a brief
introduction to vacuum
systems.
Lab Station 4:Material
Properties.
(2 Weeks)
• Using a spectrophotometer
with LabVIEW for data
collection.
• Scanning Tunneling
Microscope.
Synchrotron Radiation Center Experience: (3 Weeks)
Students visit and use the SRC for photoemission studies of materials of their
own choosing. SRC instrumentation and data collection is controlled remotely by
LabVIEW via a Web interface.
Earth’s Field NMR Lab (2 Weeks)
Lab 1: Guided Exercises: 2 Lab periods (4 hrs)
Topic
Exercise
Creating a Virtual Instrument
Exercise 0 - Perform a mathematical
function on two numbers.
Working with Loops
Exercise 2 - Add a loop structure to
convert the temperature from degrees
Celsius to Fahrenheit so that it will run
until stopped.
Controls and data Types
Exercise 3 - Switches, lights, Boolean
and conversion.
Using Charts
Exercise 4 – Build a vi to display a
simulated “noisy” sine signal.
DAQ – Data Acquisition with the 6009
Exercise 5: Acquire and graph an input
signal from a function generator. Start
with InputStarter.vi
Recording and Saving Data
Exercise 6 – Create a vi that will record a
graph’s data using the “Write to
Measurement File” subVI.
Exercise 2 sample:
The “Front Panel” contains
Controls and Indicators
The “Block Diagram” contains the program
of components wired together.
Lab 1: Assigned tasks: 4 Lab periods (8 hrs)
Assignment example:
Physics 221: Intermediate Laboratory
Station 1 Assignment: Computer Interfacing
Objectives:
You will learn basic functions and methods for transferring data from devices to computers and use computers to
generate signals to remote devices. You will become acquainted with a digital storage oscilloscope as well as the
LabVIEW program.
1.
2.
3.
Complete the Introduction to LabVIEW exercises.
Complete a LabVIEW program to graph and save data
Complete a LabVIEW program to create a Decimal to Binary converter; use two LED lights connected
to the NI-6009 interface to display the result.
4. Use the NI-6009 interface to turn on a LED diode when triggered by a signal from a photocell.
5. Use the NI-6009 interface to run a small motor when triggered by a signal from a photocell. This will
require the use of a “Darlington” circuit.
6. Create a LabVIEW program to acquire and save to a file the waveform produced by a function
generator.
Extra credit: Pass the LabVIEW fundamentals exam at http://www.ni.com/training/labview_exam.htm
Supplemental LabVIEW material available on request.
Progress and programs will be kept track of in your Laboratory Notebook. At the end of the
Lab Station, you will turn in your notebook as well as a lab report detailing your activities.
Grading will follow guidelines of the rubrics handed out in the course syllabus.
Result for Task 5: Run a small motor with LabVIEW.
Photocell uncovered, Photocell covered,
Motor is off.
Motor is on.
Circuit to increase
the current to the
motor
LabVIEW block
diagram controlling
the motor.
LabVIEW front panel.
Lab Station 4: Spectrophotometer
A LabVIEW virtual
instrument is used
to collect
spectrophotometer
data. This VI is
similar to one the
students created
earlier in the
semester.
Synchrotron Radiation Center SPECTRA:
Photoemission experiment
LabVIEW
is used at
the SRC to
remotely
control the
instrument
and collect
data.
For more information:
e-mail:
sahyuns@uww.edu
PPT Poster at:
http://academics.uww.edu/physics/scs/conferences.html
Synchrotron Radiation Center SPECTRA:
http://spectra.src.wisc.edu/
SRC Paper:
Undergraduate student laboratory experience at the Synchrotron Radiation
Center, Steven C. Sahyun, Jeffrey M. Polak, and Christopher J. Moore
Am. J. Phys. 74, 987 (2006)