Development of a classroom activity exploring quantum phenomenon using authentic, research-grade code on the AMOSGateway

Computation and simulation are now widely adopted in physics classrooms, typically with the goal of enhancing students’ conceptual understanding or providing a familiar context within which students can learn the basics of computer programming [1,2]. These experiences, while very valuable, do not typically reflect how professional physicists use computation to perform research. To provide students with a more authentic way of engaging with computation, and to explore contexts beyond the level of typical educational simulations, we have developed an activity exploring Above Threshold Ionization using research-grade software. The code we will use, the R-Matrix with Time-dependence (RMT) method [3], is deployed on the Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Science Gateway (AMOSGateway) [4], a web-based platform which provides accessible user interfaces for a dozen state-of-the-art AMO physics software suites. Students can select different input parameters (such as laser wavelength and intensity), choose a supercomputing resource, and make plots of their results all directly on the AMOSGateway. This allows students to explore concepts and phenomena that are typically idealized in lecture classes in the same way that a professional physicist might do so. Using research-grade code creates an opportunity to engage authentically as a physicist, with implications for both conceptual learning and physics identity formation [5].

 

[1] M. D. Caballero and L. Merner, Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res., 14 (2018) 020129

[2] N. Rutten, W. R. Van Joolingen and J. T. Van Der Veen, Comput. Educ., 58 (2012) 136– 153

[3] A. C. Brown et al., Comp. Phys. Commun. 250 (2020) 107062

[4] https://amosgateway.org/

[5] D. Schriebl, A. Müller, and N. Robin, Sci. Educ. (Dordr.) 32 (2023) 1021–1048