Undergraduate Projects

Undergraduate Projects Supervised by Dr. K. Walus

This website provides a list of undergraduate projects that are supervised by Dr. Konrad Walus. If you have related project ideas, please contact me and we can discuss them on a case by case basis.

Why Get Involved?

Our research group is always looking for bright and enthusiastic undergraduate students to work on various exciting projects. There is more than one way to get involved in our research. 1, you can contribute as part of the EECE 496 projects. 2, you can contribute as part of the NSERC USRA program. 3, You can volunteer your time for the summer of available semesters.

The benefits to you of your involvement are significant. You will gain valuable skills that you can apply in your industry or research career. You will work with a team of excellent researchers that will help you to develop critical thinking and self-directed learning skills which are essential for a successful career in engineering.

NSERC Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRA) Program

Our research group accepts 2 or 3 USRA program students each summer. To get involved in this exciting program, please contact Dr. Walus directly. To find out more about this program and how you can apply check out the NSERC USRA website.

EECE 400 / 496 Projects

Our research group accepts several 496 students each semester. To get involved in the projects listed below, please contact Dr. Walus directly.

Available Projects

Design, construction, and testing of a screen printing apparatus for microdevice fabrication

Printed devices are expected to play a significant role in future technology. Screen printing is a technique that has been applied to the fabrication of microscale electronic and MEMS devices for various applications including flexible circuits and sensors. We are looking for students to help us design, build, and test a new screen printing apparatus for making such devices in the laboratory.

For this project, the student(s) will:

  1. Review existing journal literature on screen printing and printed devices
  2. Design the mechanical and electrical components of the printing system using computer aided design (e.g. SolidWorks)
  3. Assemble, test, and characterize the system
  4. Document the design including CAD drawings, electrical schematics, and printing results

Design, construction, and testing of a poling station for piezoelectric thin films

Piezoelectric materials are capable of generating an electric potential in response to applied mechanical stress, and vice versa, but in order to operate efficiently, the randomly aligned electric dipole domains existing within the material must be aligned. Poling is the process of applying a strong electric field across the material in order to align these domains. For our research, we will be creating thin films of piezoelectric polymer using various techniques (i.e. spinning, inkjet printing, etc.), and will need equipment to pole the film.

For this project, the student will:

  1. Review existing journal literature on poling apparatus design
  2. Design the mechanical and electrical components of the poling station
  3. Assemble, and test the system by poling piezoelectric films
  4. Document the design including CAD drawings, electrical schematics, and poling results

Students selected for this project should have a good understanding of the material in the following course(s) [please note that it is acceptable if you have not yet taken some of these courses]: EECE 251, EECE 253, EECE 254, EECE 263, EECE 300, EECE 356

Design and Fabrication of Gas Preconcentrator (2 students)

Our research on chemical gas sensors requires a preconcentrator in order to achieve lower detection limits with our devices. Preconcentration involves flowing large quantities of air containing the target analyte, possibly at very low concentrations, through a matrix of engineered adsorbent material. The adsorbent can consist of graphitized carbon, resin, or other beads that will collect the analyte. After a pre-determined period of time, the adsorbent matrix is heated using an integrated heater, releasing the collected gas into the sensing chamber at a much higher concentration.

For this project, the student(s) will:

  1. Improve and complete existing preconcentrator mechanical design
  2. Build parts and assemble preconcentrator
  3. Collaborate with students working on preconcentrator instrumentation
  4. Document designs including CAD drawings, flowcharts, etc.

Students selected for this project should be familiar with SolidWorks.

Design of Gas Preconcentrator Instrumentation (2 students)

Our research on chemical gas sensors requires a preconcentrator in order to achieve lower detection limits with our devices. Preconcentration involves flowing large quantities of air containing the target analyte, possibly at very low concentrations, through a matrix of engineered adsorbent material. The adsorbent can consist of graphitized carbon, resin, or other beads that will collect the analyte. After a pre-determined period of time, the adsorbent matrix is heated using an integrated heater, releasing the collected gas into the sensing chamber at a much higher concentration.

For this project, the student(s) will:

  1. Select and order required components and instrumentation
  2. Use LabView to interface with instruments and control the preconcentration process
  3. Collaborate with students working on preconcentrator design
  4. Document designs including CAD drawings, flowcharts, electrical schematics, LabView files, etc.

Students selected for this project should be familiar with LabView

Design of Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) Chemical Sensor Instrumentation (1 student)

A SAW sensor consists of 2 sets of interdigital transducers (IDT) on a piezoelectric substrate. The input IDT converts an electrical signal to a SAW which propagates to the output IDT. The SAW is then converted back to an electrical signal. A functional layer is then placed between the two IDTs. This layer is selected to absorb specific chemicals, which changes the density of the layer and, in turn, changes the propagation of the SAW and the output signal. In this way the signal changes proportionally to the concentration of the target chemical in the air. We are developing SAW sensors for use in air quality monitoring stations to monitor concentrations of volatile organic compounds. One very important aspect of the sensors is the instrumentation used to generate an input signal and process the output signal to determine the concentration of the target chemical.

For this project, the student will:

  1. Review SAW literature and determine the most appropriate instrumentation method for our application
  2. Design instrumentation and source components
  3. Assemble and test the system using sensors developed in our laboratory
  4. Document the design including CAD drawings, electrical schematics, and sensor performance data for various gases

Students selected for this project should have a good understanding of the material in the following course(s) [please note that it is acceptable if you have not yet taken some of these courses]: EECE 251, EECE 253, EECE 254, EECE 263, EECE 300, EECE 356, EECE 359