- #1
Thundagere
- 159
- 0
I was working on my cloud chamber today, and I ran into two problems:
A) It's not working :) To be more specific, I used compressed air to get the bottom extremely cold. The structure itself is a small plastic throw away cup, with a sponge with 91% alcohol stuck to the top. The bottom (the open end of the cup) is covered in a thin metal plate, and I spray the air onto that. It gets really, really cold. However, I was unable to see any tracks. Is this because i don't havea radioactive source? I thought I might be able to see a muon or positron every now and then, but I guess not...
Also, once I was done, a purplish liquid was remaining in the cloud chamber. Could this be a product of the difuroethane from the duster and the isopropyl alcohol? I'm not sure about this.
The purple liquid. I got it into a tube as soon as it came, since I'm still not sure what it is.
http://imageshack.us/a/img525/7906/20121122131134.jpg
The set up of the cloud chamber. It looks nasty right now, but that's mostly because of the liquid. Metal bottom, sealed with plasticine. Sponge on top. Black background.
http://imageshack.us/a/img831/1209/20121122131226.jpg
Any help would be appreciated!
UPDATE: The liquid is definitely primarily alcohol based. I did some tests, and it's definitely flammable (don't have much left now, lol), and smells like alcohol. I'm just not sure what gives it the purple color.
A) It's not working :) To be more specific, I used compressed air to get the bottom extremely cold. The structure itself is a small plastic throw away cup, with a sponge with 91% alcohol stuck to the top. The bottom (the open end of the cup) is covered in a thin metal plate, and I spray the air onto that. It gets really, really cold. However, I was unable to see any tracks. Is this because i don't havea radioactive source? I thought I might be able to see a muon or positron every now and then, but I guess not...
Also, once I was done, a purplish liquid was remaining in the cloud chamber. Could this be a product of the difuroethane from the duster and the isopropyl alcohol? I'm not sure about this.
The purple liquid. I got it into a tube as soon as it came, since I'm still not sure what it is.
http://imageshack.us/a/img525/7906/20121122131134.jpg
The set up of the cloud chamber. It looks nasty right now, but that's mostly because of the liquid. Metal bottom, sealed with plasticine. Sponge on top. Black background.
http://imageshack.us/a/img831/1209/20121122131226.jpg
Any help would be appreciated!
UPDATE: The liquid is definitely primarily alcohol based. I did some tests, and it's definitely flammable (don't have much left now, lol), and smells like alcohol. I'm just not sure what gives it the purple color.
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