Stop for a minute and try to imagine your world without electrical power and electronic gadgets. No convenient appliances in the kitchen, no electric lights. No computers, MP3 players, television, or video games. Your life would be completely different, wouldn't it? Electricity and electronics are so central to modern life that, paradoxically, they're easy to overlook. Stop overlooking them now and try a hand at one of our projects to explore the science of how electricity works or build a cool electronics gadget.
How does the intensity of a light source change as you move away from it? This project describes a method to verify the inverse square law: how light, sound, electrical signals, and gravity each decrease with distance from their source. It does not matter if you are talking about a lightbulb or the sun; this law still applies!
Read more
Elec_p028
+ More Details
- Less Details
Time Required
Very Short (≤ 1 day)
Prerequisites
None
Material Availability
For your convenience a kit is available for this project from our partner
.
The electricity in your home probably comes from a power plant, but did you know that you can actually generate your own electricity? Wondering what it would take to light up a small light? This is your chance! In this electronics science project, you will build your own electric generator and investigate how to light up not just one, but two lights.
Read more
Elec_p078
+ More Details
- Less Details
Time Required
Very Short (≤ 1 day)
Prerequisites
You should have the patience and dexterity to coil several layers of wire neatly (or find someone who can help you).
You will also need to hook up a basic circuit. Understanding electric circuits is not a prerequisite for this science project, though it will enable a deeper understanding of the electric generator.
Material Availability
A kit containing all the specialty items needed for this project is available from our partner
.
Cost
Low ($20 - $50)
Safety
Neodymium magnets are very strong. Follow the safety guidelines in the Procedure for working with these magnets.
Motors are used in many things you find around your house, like your refrigerator, coffee maker, and even a lawn mower. In this electronics science fair project, you will get to build a simple motor, using a kit, and then test how the number of batteries (amount of voltage) used to power the motor affects its performance.
Read more
Elec_p057
+ More Details
- Less Details
Time Required
Average (6-10 days)
Prerequisites
None
Material Availability
Specialty items: You will need a switch motor kit, ready for assembly. See the Materials and Equipment list for details.
Cost
High ($100 - $150)
Safety
Minor injury is possible, so be sure to wear safety goggles. Adult supervision is recommended.
It's fun to host and attend parties. You can meet your friends, watch movies, and eat party food. Another thing that people like to do at parties is dance to music. Dancing is great exercise and just makes people happy. What if at the next party you attend, you could do your science fair project? Doesn't sound like a good idea? Well, in this electricity and electronics science fair project, you will make a dance pad that flashes lights when you step on it. Have your friends test it out for you.…
Read more
Every day, no matter where you are, you will see people using their cell phones. People use their cell phones for
more than just making calls though. They use them for texting and searching the Internet, too. But some health groups
are concerned that using your cell phone too much can be hazardous to your health as it exposes your body to electromagnetic radiation. In this electricity and electronics
science project, you will investigate how much radiation your cell phone emits when used…
Read more
Elec_p068
+ More Details
- Less Details
Time Required
Long (2-4 weeks)
Prerequisites
You must have access to a cell phone.
Material Availability
In order to test for electromagnetic radiation in the radio frequency range, you need a radio frequency (RF) meter. See the Materials and Equipment list for details.
Cost
Average ($50 - $100)
Safety
Wear proper safety gear when building the jig. See the Experimental Procedure for details.
Night-lights can be found in many homes; you might even have one in your bedroom! Using a night-light is a great way to avoid stubbing your toe on furniture during a midnight trip to the bathroom. In this fun engineering project, you will design and build your own night-light. You will need to build the circuit, but you will also need to think about the physical design of the product. Most people probably do not want an ugly, bare circuit board sitting around their house. Can you make a…
Read more
Do you want to trick friends and visitors with an amazing optical illusion? In this engineering design project you will learn how to build an infinity mirror,with built-in lights that make the mirror look like a deep tunnel with no end. But pick the mirror up and look behind it, and you will see that it is only a couple of inches thick! Read this project to find out not only how this illusion works, but how to design and build your very own infinity mirror from scratch.
Read more
Elec_p080
+ More Details
- Less Details
Time Required
Average (6-10 days)
Prerequisites
None
Material Availability
This project will require some specialty materials from hardware and arts and craft stores. See the Materials list for details.
Cost
Average ($40 - $80)
Safety
Adult supervision is required when using any sharp cutting tools or power tools to cut plexiglass. Always wear safety glasses or goggles when cutting brittle materials such as plexiglass. Some tools (in particular, hot glue guns and soldering irons) can cause serious burns. Use these carefully and with adult supervision.
LEDs (light-emitting diodes) are electronic components that convert a portion of the electrical energy flowing through them into light. How does the intensity of the light produced vary with the current flowing through the LED? To find out, you'll build some simple circuits to vary the current flowing an LED. You'll also build a simple light-to-voltage converter circuit to measure LED output.
Read more
Piezoelectric barbecue fire starters work by creating a spark that ignites the volatile lighter fluid, which then starts the charcoal burning. They are low current, high voltage devices. How high does the voltage have to get to make a spark in air? This project shows you a way to find out by with an inexpensive experimental setup to measure the distance that the spark can travel between two spherical electrodes.
Read more
From traffic safety lights to neon signs, lights have a way of getting peoples' attention. So it makes sense that if a person wants to get attention, wearing clothing with built-in lights might help. These types of clothing, called electronic textiles (or e-textiles for short) already exist. Instead of using hard surfaces for circuits (like inside your computer or cell phone), e-textiles weave electrical parts like batteries, wires, and lights directly into wearable clothing so it can do…
Read more
Elec_p076
+ More Details
- Less Details
Time Required
Average (6-10 days)
Prerequisites
Familiarity with basic electronics concepts like positive and negative terminals as well as open and closed circuits will be helpful for this science project. Students with no experience building circuits may want to try the simpler but thematically similar project: [# ProjectIdea Name="Elec_p077" Value="HtmlAnchor" #].
Material Availability
This science project requires special LEDs designed for use with e-textiles, and it will be much easier to do with a soldering iron. See the Materials and Equipment list for details.
Cost
Average ($40 - $80)
Safety
Soldering irons can get extremely hot and burn your skin if you touch them accidentally. They can also cause fires if left unattended. Adult supervision is required when using a soldering iron, especially if you are not familiar with using one. Science Buddies recommends using lead-free solder, especially in homes with pets and small children.
