Question: What specific area do you work with in the topic mechinical vibration?

Dan Veal answered on 16 Mar 2012:

Good question! I do a few things, but one main thing is vibration isolation for instruments.

Vibration is everywhere, and at very low levels, the vibrations i can dected in my building from people walking around, cars on the road, the air conditioning fans on the roof, all these things mess up measurements. Even when you dont’ feel them, they’re there – like constant mini-micro earthquakes from people walking by.

So what we want to make is a platform that we can put instruments on top of that’s completely isolated from the ground. We’re trying to use air cushions (like an air suspension on fancy maountain bikes you see, with two little air cylinders that keeps the bike from rattling when it goes over rough bumps), plus small force actuators that counteract the shaking we get from the ground. So when my isolation platform is working correctly whatever is on top (maybe a complicated chemistry experiment with sensitive glass, and pumps and such, usually it’s not mine but someone else’s experiement) doesn’t feel any vibration from the ground.

Hope that makes sense!