1. Project Identity:

Design of Magnetic Field Concentrators

Week 5 (Jan. 31 ~ Feb. 6, 2010) Report

Due Sunday February 7th

Group D: Mohammedjuned Desai, Areio Hashemi, Koji Hirota, Michael Wong

2. Work Completed

During the week 5, we have done several processes that include setting up the senior design project website, writing our final proposal, and continued running the program simulation, started preparations to build a prototype model.

Setting up our own senior design project website account was directed by TA Gokul during the discussion hours. This website should include project definition, benchmark dates, project updates, the team profile, progress tracker, to-dos, weekly reports and etc… Our project website is constructed under http://www.engr.ucr.edu/~modesai. The main page looks like shown in Figure 1 below.

Figure 1: This is first attemptation website overview.

For the moment this is in the first stages of the website and we will continue to update it along the way as we progress along.

Writing final proposal was another accomplishment during this 5th week. We rewrote our proposal based on Dr. Schultz advice from the meeting in last week. We focused writing on more clear and specific indication of our project by adding the actual parameters of fabricated material which includes microscope and magnetic tweezers and its functions. We also updated the time schedule to keep track on our process. Our final proposal was submitted and it is in the process of viewing.

We continued to use a magnetic filed simulation program FEMM (Finite Eelement Methods magnetics) to model the magnets with a different designs that would give us the best magnetic gradient possible. Before (up to 4th week), we focused more on simulating with a single magnet. In this 5th week, we focused on only simulating with double (two) magnets pointing each other; a picture of simulation with two magnets is shown in Figure 2. We are able to use specific magnets size and materials which we experienced and specified with previous simulations during 4th week. Also, we tried with a new core material that may give us. We also tried with a new core material (mu metal) which gave us better results than the previous metal we used (iron). From the obtained data, we used IGORE program to organize and analyze these simulation data. The reason we switched to a new core is because this is the likely material that we will be using for the actual fabrication.

Figure 2: Double magnets simulation

We have measured the dimensions of microscopes and estimated an aluminum base which eventually holds the four magnets (main part of magnetic tweezers). These are the features for which we calculated the dimensions.

1) Free space to work on: This correlates to the space that we have on the base to place our magnetic design

2) The double magnets: Here the dimensions are the same as before only we rotated the magnets.

3) The top space between the magnets:

This is ideally where we will set up the light microscopy to shine a light down our sample.

4) The distance from the tips:

This is the space we have to place the particle in between the two magnets.

Obtaining these dimensions is important for our fabrication, which we are primed to start.

Lastly, the first step to fabricating a prototype is to have a discussion with one of Dr. Rodgers research members about coiling the magnet process. This discussion is neccesary because we need to know how a senior design group from last year was able to accomplish coiling the cooper wire about the core of the magnet. However, a reseach member was not avalable in this 5th week, so we made an appointment to learn about the coiling process and furthermore information. These are the acheivements we accomplied during this 5th week.

Thus far we are still on track to accomplish our goal, this is evident from our timeline.

1st Quarter / Goal / Completed
Week 1 / Determine goal and objectives for the project / Yes
Week 2 / Finalize the proposal / Yes
Week 3 / Learn how to use FEMM, building models, producing results etc. / Yes
Week 4 / Begin running magnet models / Yes
Week 5 / Begin discussing and analyzing results / Yes
Week 6 / Complete all the software models and analyzing the results
Week 7 / Start ordering/gathering parts to begin fabrication
Week 8 / Begin fabrication
Week 9 / Attach the part to the microscope
Week 10 / Have prototype/design already built
2nd Quarter
Week 1 / Read up and familiarize ourselves with protocol on the calibration of the magnetic tweezers
Week 2 / Being calibration
Week 3 / Proper Placement of Mirrors/Objectives
Week 4 / Finding Linear Region of the gradient field
Week 5 / Focusing Camera for Viewing Bead Movement
Week 6 / Calculating Velocity of Beads from Measured Distance and Time and use Stokes Equation to fine the Force Exerted on the
Week 7 / Begin experimentation
Week 8 / Take data from sample
Week 9 / Compare data with published results
Week 10 / Finalization of the product and calibration

3. Future Work

For the future work, we will continue analyzing the double magnets simulation data and to finalize the results. Another step that can give us the huge improvement is to have a meeting with one of members from Dr. Rodgers research group. This will determine what are avalable materials and methods to us, and we will be able to have alternative ideas for coiling process. If this meeting goes well, we will be able to start ordering materials and eventually, we will be able to start building a prototype of our magnetic tweezers. At the same time, we will be working on website creation that we will update our process upto this week.

4. Project Review

According to our objectives schedule below, we are on track of our schedule. We did not encounter any huge troubles up to this week. However, we are unsure about how the coiling process meeting goes. We should realize what are avalabilities and alternatives. Depending on the meeting, we may have a hard time for coiling process which leads to the simulation problem, or it may fasten our project to build the prototype. Therefore, we are looking forward to complete all the software models and nanalyzing the results by next week. If we are unable to set up a meeting for the coiling process, instead of coiling the magnet ourselves we will buy pre-coiled magnets. On that note we have also started to inquire of the purchase cost of our magnetic core (mu metal.)