Extended Reality Chemistry Lab for the United States Air Force Academy

The United States Air Force Academy has a national defense-related mission to train the future leaders and warfighters of our country. In the Chemistry Department, one of the most important learning processes is the laboratory where learners apply theory to practice through experimentation. However, the lab practice is constrained in time, resources, and accessibility because it has to be organized under the supervision of an instructor for safety reasons. The time that students can devote to laboratory experiences is often impeded by absences due to field training, athletics, or illness. Moreover, there is no opportunity to experiment with rare, inaccessible, or hazardous materials.  Therefore, USAFA has a mission need for an interactive and engaging extended reality (XR) learning product that simulates experiments in the chemistry lab, allowing students to test their hypothesis in a safe environment with an opportunity to learn interactively and make mistakes without endangering themselves. The proposed Phase II project will create an XR interactive lab that can be used by learners on mobile devices and XR devices such as HoloLens.