Tour the Columbia Physics Design Laboratory

Pupin Hall is home to some of the most groundbreaking discoveries in science, like the development of the maser—the device that led to lasers—the discovery of deuterium, and the origins of the Manhattan Project. Today, the nearly 100-year-old building is still creating innovative experiments. And now, students, researchers, and faculty have a place to collaborate and create.

The Columbia Physics Design Laboratory serves the entire physics department at Columbia University, from those studying the universe to those exploring quantum phenomena. The lab is run by Clara Wilson, who has reinvented Pupin Room 1111 into a makerspace.

She describes it as an “open access” space “where students, researchers, PIs, can come in and manufacture the things they need.”

In this makerspace you can find new equipment (3D printers, a laser cutter, etc.) as well as some old staples (drill presses and iron mills). All who come to Pupin 1111 learn how to operate this machinery directly from Wilson.

“This space,” she says, “is going to be a breeding ground for some new phenomenal ideas.”

To learn more about Wilson and The Columbia Physics Design Laboratory, watch the video above and read “DIY at the Columbia Physics Design Lab”