STUDENT RESEARCH
Undergraduate Opportunities

F-16 Component Testing:  Craig Moore ('99) conducted research with Assistant Professor Bob Bittle on simulating component testing for the F-16 aircraft.  This research was conducted for Locheed Martin Corporation.

Optical Communications:  Francisco Varela ('99) conducted research with Assistant Professor Tristan Tayag on optical communications.  He presented his work at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research in Salisbury, MD  in April 1998.  During the conference, Francisco was interviewed by Maryland Public Television which was conducting a series on Education in Maryland.

Drop Coalescence:  Ryan Coles ('01), Associate Professor Andre Mazzoleni, Isaac Varner ('00), and Roberto Hernandez ('00).  The three students participated in the 1999 Reduced Gravity Student Flight Oppportunities Program at the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in August.  The objective of their project was to determine the viscosity of fluids by "drop coalescence."
Oils Well Drilling:  Brad Beadle ('96) conducted research with Professor Steve Weis on a project whose goal was to improve the efficiency of oil well drilling.  They developed a system to transmit information for the drill bit in the ground to the surface using fiber optics. This research resulted in 4 publications and a research patent.  It was featured in the January 1998 issue of Texas Monthly.
Solar Power from Space:  A Team of students took an elective class entitled "Spacecraft Design" with Associate Professor Andre Mazzoleni.  As part of this class, the TCU student team participated on a multi-university inter-disciplinary design project sponsored by NASA and the Texas Space Grant Consortium.  The 97-98 project was "Solar Power from Space".  As part of the class, students travel to Houston at the end of each semester to give a presentation to NASA officials from the Johnson Space Center.
MEMS:  Peter Allen ('98) conducted research with Professor Ed Kolesar on Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS).  This research resulted in 1 refereed journal paper, 4 conference presentations/papers, and 4 technical reports/presentations for which Peter was co-author.  One conference presentation/paper was given at the Student Research Conference at West Texas A&M University where Peter won $500 and a plaque for the best paper within the Engineering category.