A Physics Laboratory Activity to Simulate the Operation of the Touchscreen on a Smartphone

We use cell phones as a context to teach important concepts in introductory physics. Our activities are based on an innovative hands-on, inquiry-based curriculum. We have modified the curriculum to incorporate additional activities. This paper will describe a physics laboratory experiment to simulate the operation of the touchscreen on a smartphone. A detailed description of the activity will be provided. The simulator is fabricated using common office and laboratory supplies and is inexpensive enough that students can keep the model. We describe how the simulator is used in two different courses. One course is designed for high school students attending a university enrichment program, the other is a secondsemester undergraduate general physics laboratory course. In addition we present the results of an open-ended assessment of student learning. Students are engaged to write to a specific prompt and we assess the writing in a preand post-activity format. The results of the assessment indicate that the experiment helps students understand how the touchscreen on a smartphone functions.