Augmented reality direct current glow discharge experimentation

The glowing discharges of plasma obtained by introducing direct current high voltages between two electrodes in a chamber that contains a low pressure gas produces a spectacular effect that makes it attractive to be used as a laboratory experiment for students. Setting up this experiment is however costly and has crucial safety issues to be addressed. An augmented reality approach here allows students to conduct such an experiment effectively. It was designed to guide students on how to conduct the experiment safely and properly, as well as to allow them to note the voltage breakdown values according to Paschen's rule. The tool has the strong advantage of allowing students to conduct experimentation without removing any of the real-life and tactile features that help to constitute cognition events in the natural world. It also yielded positive responses when tested on 39 high school students as part of an outreach program for science and technology.