NSF/ILI Undergraduate Lightwave Communication System Design and Prototyping Laboratory
(L. Hornak: PI, S. Tewksbury: Co-PI)

In the fall 1995 semester, efforts began to establish a new Undergraduate Lightwave Communication Systems Prototyping Laboratory following award Instrumentation and Laboratory Improvement (ILI) Grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and matching support from the Dept. of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) and College of Engineering and Mineral Resources (CEMR). This laboratory represents a unique educational approach for integrating student understanding of electrical and computer engineering topics through their application within fiber optic lightwave communication systems. The fiber optic prototyping environment made available to undergraduates by this new lab will open the door to curriculum-based design experiences and senior projects enabling students to explore lightwave technology and its central role in the information age while preparing them for ever more communications intensive careers with the private and government sectors both in West Virginia and nationwide.

The "blueprint-styled" figure below illustrates the overall laboratory (co-located with the NSF/ILI Undergraduate Design & Prototyping Laboratory).