REU 2011 Blog: Daniel Escobedo
The Magnet Lab's Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program draws students from all over the country to spend eight weeks learning from the leading researchers in their chosen field. This blog chronicles two undergraduates interested in science careers – one from a large university and another from a small college – as they learn their way around the lab and expand their research horizons.
By Kathleen Laufenberg
Meet tomorrow's scientists: Daniel Escobedo
Week 8
On Tuesday of his final week, Daniel was about 25 percent done with the fourth version of his final poster (An Analysis of Bronze-Process Nb3Sn Filament Fractures), which was due Wednesday at noon. He also needed to polish some samples.
"I think tomorrow, I have class at 9:30, but I think I'm going to show up, if I can, maybe at 8 a.m. … expand the (poster's) results section, remove conclusions … (mentor-scientist Peter Lee) wants me to put a summary instead and a future work section. I think that's about it.
"From what I've heard, Dr. (Eric) Hellstrom and Dr. Ulf (Trociewitz) are sticklers … about what we're going to put on (our posters) … I'm pretty confident I can answer whatever questions they ask of me.
"I always figure when you start a job, you finish it. … I definitely want to leave Dr. Lee with the samples done and polished. I would feel bad if I hadn't finished this … I think he might eventually end up using it in some way to prove his theories.
"It's been awesome. I feel like I've gotten so much more insight into what the field is like. I really didn't have much of a clue when it came to this because I really hadn't gotten work experience like this before. I'm definitely grateful for everything. … The summer, I would say, has been rewarding but hard earned. Even to now, I'm struggling, trying to finish this poster on the fourth revision."
Week 7
Daniel talks about the heat-treatment process he's doing for his project, his ideas on how to make his poster, and his assessment of what he's learned.
"It's a very long process. It's very tedious. … But (mentor-scientist Peter Lee) said it's a process that's been 12 years of refinement. Every step is essential to what he's looking for: He wants to find out what causes these wires to break. He wants to find some strong correlation about the appearances of these voids and these missing ends with these fractures, and maybe predetermining, 'this is going to break at this temperature, and this is apparent because of these voids.'
"For my poster, I'm going to get pictures of every machine I worked on, and as many tools as I can … describing from beginning to end how this process occurs.
"Like really, honestly, this is definitely the most satisfying experience I've had as far as using some of the knowledge that I've gained from mechanical engineering. Because up to this point, I really haven't been able to us any of the knowledge I've learned from all my classes. It's really cool to see it in action, to see that you're a researcher. That's pretty cool."
Week 6
Week 3
This week, Daniel learned how to prepare a sample of superconducting wire to be heat-treated. Teaching him was research associate and lab manager Bill Starch. Here's some of the conversation between them during Daniel's lab lesson:
"You need to go cut your (superconducting) wires 2 ½ inches and put them in the tubes," Bill says. "But we've got to clean the (wire) samples with alcohol before we put them in there. What you want to do is wipe the samples off and lay them down and let them dry first."
After the wire goes into the tube, Daniel learns to use a (hydrogen) lab torch to vacuum seal the tube.
"This is the fun part," he says. "I have to (learn how to) get rid of that pointy edge (on the glass tube). Bill was telling me if you leave it on, it's sharp as a needle…On the side (of the tube), we kind of make a hook because I need to pull out these samples from the furnace, and I'm going to use a wire to pull them out, so I need something to grab the sample with, so that's why we make the hooks on the side."
"Red is always your gas," Bill says as he lights the torch, then hands it to Daniel.
"Now what you want to do is concentrate in this area right here," Bill instructs. "If you get too close to your sample, you'll melt your O-rings. … That was too close…. Be careful. Always try to keep your flame down towards the brick…. It's going to take some time. There you go. … Soften it up. Turn it. … Now, melt this side down. Check your vacuum… Done!
"Now … this is the shutdown procedure: Close the hydrogen down."
"Righty-tighty," Daniel says.
"Yup. … Open up your red nob on your torch."
"This one?"
"Yeah, open it up. …Now close it. Make sure all three are shut and there you go. Everything is shut off independently."
"Fun stuff," Daniel says. "Bill gets to do fun stuff all the time."
Week 2
Daniel Escobedo
In his second week, Daniel continues to work at a computer, examining 463 images of used superconducting wire (niobium tin) magnified 200 times. His mentor, scientist Peter Lee, is trying to determine what causes this superconducting wire to crack.
"I was saving to the Z-drive (of the computer), but it's a temporary drive and I lost two days of work! I had all of this done, but now I'm doing it all over. I told Dr. Lee that I couldn't believe it, that I'd deleted everything. Two days of work! But I didn't give up.
I'm looking to see if the voids force (the wire) to crack, and I've gotten to the point now that I've done this so many times that I notice things I probably didn't notice before. I know exactly where the crack is almost without even looking.
It's interesting definitely. Everyday, I get a better understanding of what Dr. Lee is trying to prove, and that makes it get even more interesting. It would be awesome if he gets to prove whatever he wants to prove while I'm here. If I had to do research, it would be something like this, because it's like being a pioneer in something completely new.
I think pretty soon I'm going to get to program the heat controller for the furnaces, and so I'll be doing something completely different. That's going to be a real challenge."
Daniel Escobedo
Daniel Escobedo, a bilingual engineering major from Miami, and Alesha Shorts, an environmental chemistry major from rural North Carolina, are two of the 19 college interns at the Magnet Lab this summer. They're part of an intensive, eight-week program, Research Experiences for Undergraduates, that matches students with scientists. Under the watchful eyes of their mentors, these students explore materials and other phenomena at extreme magnet fields, pressures and temperatures.
We'll update you each week on what Alesha and Daniel are doing. But for now, here's a brief look at who they are:
Daniel Escobedo, 20, will be a senior at Florida State University this fall. The mechanical engineering major is also part of the Navy Nuclear Propulsion Officer Candidate Program. That means he must serve at least three years in the Navy after he graduates — and that he must maintain a 3.3 grade point average each semester.
"If I'm taking four classes, that means I've got to get two As and two Bs."
He grew up in Miami Springs, the oldest of three kids. His dad is a firefighter; his mom works at home. His family is bilingual: His mom was born in Cuba, and his dad in New York.
"When I was growing up, I always spoke to my mom in Spanish, and to my dad in English."
One of his first memories of being mechanical came when he was only 11. His aunt's grandfather clock stopped working. He took it apart and got it ticking again.
"It was very cool to see I could fix something."
This summer, in addition to his internship at the lab, he's also taking two classes at FSU and another in Gainesville. That leaves him little time to indulge in his favorite recreation: weight lifting and working out. Growing up in Miami, he also got into surfing, but hasn't had much time for that either. Or listening to his favorite reggae and ska tunes.
His mentor during the summer is Peter Lee, a scholar-scientist studying superconductivity. Daniel will be working at the Applied Superconductivity Center across the street from the Magnet Lab. His first few days, he worked on a computer, cataloging the presence of cracks, and other features, in close-up images of brittle superconducting materials.
"These materials aren't really resistant, so the electricity just shoots through them, and this force eventually creates fatigue and cracks. That's what the research is based on: What forms these cracks and causes them to break.
"I'm excited," he said of his internship. "It's nice to finally use some of the knowledge that I've been learning for the past three years."
For more information about the MagLab's REU program contact Jose Sanchez at sanchez@magnet.fsu.edu or (850) 645-0033.
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