Laser Maze - Reflection, Transmission, and Absorption

Laser Maze is an activity that will engage students in learning and utilizing the properties of light waves, such as reflection, transmission, and absorbance, as well as highlighting the importance of these properties in research use by having students create mock ‘pump-probe’ experiments. After watching a video from a laser scientist, and a short brainstorming session, students will use a red laser and mirrors (cheap acrylic) to design a setup where one beam is split, crosses in a sample, and hits two separate targets within a shoebox (can be modified to be more challenging or simpler as desired). Afterwards students will create a poster to share their designs with the rest of the class describing how the use of reflection, and absorbance was used to achieve their results.