Physics experiments using simultaneously more than one smartphone sensors

In the last years, numerous Physics experiments using smartphone sensors have been reported in the literature. In this presentation we focus on a less-explored feature of the smartphones: the possibility of using (measure and register data) simultaneously with more than one sensor. To illustrate, in the field of mechanics simultaneous use of the accelerometer and gyroscope (angular velocity sensor) or in optics experiments synchronous use of the ambient light and orientation sensors have been proposed. Indeed, this is a characteristic that simplifies experimental setups allowing to see through the physics concepts and, last but not least, reducing the costs.Comment: 6 pages, 3 tables, 4 figures, Extended abstract, GIREP-MPTL 2018 - Research and Innovation in Physics education:two sides of the same coin. 9th-13th July 2018, Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain https://www.girep2018.com

The role of intermediaries in the synchronization of pulse-coupled oscillators

The role of intermediaries in the synchronization of small groups of light controlled oscillators (LCO) is addressed. A single LCO is a two-time-scale phase oscillator. When pulse-coupling two LCOs, the synchronization time decreases monotonously as the coupling strength increases, independent of the initial conditions and frequency detuning. In this work we study numerically the effects that a third LCO induces to the collective behavior of the system. We analyze the new system by dealing with directed heterogeneous couplings among the units. We report a novel and robust phenomenon, absent when coupling two LCOs, which consists of a discontinuous relationship between the synchronization time and coupling strength or initial conditions. The mechanism responsible for the appearance of such discontinuities is discussed.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figure