The Independent Activities Period (IAP) is a special term at MIT that runs from early January until the end of the month. IAP provides members of the MIT community (students, faculty, staff, and alums) with a unique opportunity to organize, sponsor and participate in a wide variety of activities, including how-to sessions, forums, athletic endeavors, lecture series, films, tours, recitals and contests.
MIT.nano is offering the following courses during IAP 2023:
6.S090 nanoStories: Workshop on science communication at the nanoscale
Instructors: Prof. Vladimir Bulovic, Director of MIT.nano; Dr. Annie Wang, Research Scientist; Samantha Farrell, Senior Administrative Assistant; Tom Gearty, Director of Communications & Initiatives at MIT.nano; and special guest speakers.
Dates: Tuesdays, Thursdays, & Fridays, 6 sessions: January 10, 12, 13, 17, 19, 20. (note schedule change)
Time: 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Location: Hybrid; in-person location: 12-3005
Participants are required to attend all sessions.
>>Register by January 7, 2023.
Designed for students with an interest in science communication and STEAM outreach. Guided by instructors, in each two-hour class students will explore a new topic, jointly developing an instructional narrative to be told in text, imagery, and/or interactive multimedia. Draw inspiration from invited talks from MIT.nano specialists as well as exceptional guest speakers curated by John Werner. Outside of MIT labs, nanoscience and nanotechnology appear mysterious. Help us demystify them! The content of the classes will reflect research/exploratory interests of participants.
MIT.nano: Make your own chip inside the lab!
Instructor: Jorg Scholvin, Assistant Director of User Services, Fab.nano
Dates & times (participants will be assigned one session):
Tuesday, 1/31, 2pm - 5pm
Wednesday, 2/1, 9am - 12pm
Wednesday, 2/1, 2pm - 5pm
Thursday, 2/2, 9am - 12pm
Thursday, 2/2, 2pm - 5pm
Thursday, 2/2, 6pm - 9pm
Friday, 2/3, 9am - 12pm
Friday, 2/3, 2pm - 5pm
Location: MIT.nano cleanroom (12-3001)
>>Register by January 30, 2023.
Step inside MIT.nano’s fab to create a 1x1 inch chip with your favorite image to take home with you! We will work inside the MIT.nano cleanroom: learn how to gown up, understand the different fab tools, and use the tools to pattern a 50 nm thin layer of aluminum with your design. At the end, we will separate out the chips from the wafer, and you get a chance to put your chip in a small frame or carrier to take with you.
Each session is limited to 12 students. On the registration form, please indicate at which sessions you would be available. We will begin communicating assigned dates and times on January 9, 2023.
Developing immersive technologies for manufacturing and engineering
Instructor: Talis Reks, AR/VR/Gaming/Big Data IT Technologist
Date: January 9, 2023
Time: N/A
Location: Zoom course using Canvas. This is a distance education, module-based, self-paced learning workshop. No pre-requisites required.
>>Register by January 4, 2023.
This workshop is a beginners guide to VR/AR development with a focus on engineering and manufacturing. We will quickly dive into game engines and create basic examples of VR/AR demos that explain the development pipeline in order to create immersive scenes that could be applied to industry and research. We will discuss what tools are being used today as well as the inner workings of game engines (Unity) and a few of its many parts, such as 3D modeling and asset creation, physics, animation, and the basics of C# for scripting your own functionality.
Innovative Gaming Training Program (IGTP)
Instructor: Talis Reks, AR/VR/Gaming/Big Data IT Technologist
Date: January 9, 2023
Time: TBD
Location: MIT.nano Immersion Lab 12-3207
>>Register by January 4, 2023.
Advanced signup required, a limited number of participants will be selected for this pilot program/opportunity.
Trainees in IGTP will dive deep in immersive gaming projects based in the Immersion Lab, related to engineering, data analytics, art, architecture, research and education and more. The program provides the resources for creative development and the opportunity to get real hands-on involvement and experience with immersive equipment. This includes motion capture, advanced head-mounted displays, and physiological monitoring.
Prerequisites: Some game design, 3D design, and/or VR or AR development experience. Must submit cover letter and resume to reks@mit.edu.
A brief introduction to e-beam lithography
Instructors: Mark Mondol, Assistant Director Nano Structures Laboratory; and Juan Ferrera, Research Scientist
Date: Tuesday, January 17, 2023
Time: 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM
Location: Hybrid; in-person location: 12-0168
>>Register by January 16, 2023.
Limited to 40 in-person participants, unlimited on Zoom.
E-beam lithography enables advanced semiconductor chips; without e-beam lithography minimum features sizes would be limited to approximately 200 nm. In research environments e-beam lithography allows direct write, maskless lithography enabling quick and relatively cheap design changes.
This talk introduces the basics of e-beam lithography and pattern transfer, including electron energy, material interaction, limits to resolution, e-beam resists, throughput, proximity effect correction and characteristics of different e-beam lithography tools.
Anyone with an interest in e-beam lithography, from neophyte, to experienced user should be able to gain something from this talk.
XR biofeedback in sports training
Instructors: Praneeth Namburi, Research Scientist; Talis Reks, AR/VR/Gaming/Big Data IT Technologist; Enya Ryu, Undergraduate Student; and Robert Hupp, MIT DAPER Intercollegiate Sports Assistant Fencing Coach
Date: January 23, 2023
Time: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Location: MIT.nano Immersion Lab 12-3207
>>Register by January 22, 2023.
In this course, you will learn basic fencing movements in an augmented reality headset. You will first do a 60-minute warmup session with Coach Robert Hupp. Then, you will learn basic movements with an XR headset. You will also be introduced to motion capture technology, which you will use to capture your own movements. Finally, you will learn to process the captured movements. This course is only open to individuals who have not fenced before.
Note: In the interest of safety, you will not be crossing blades with another person during this course. Limited to 8 participants.