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General Physics Science Fair Project

Radio Wave Interference Through Common Materials

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Radio Wave Interference Through Common Materials | Science Fair Projects | STEM Projects
Which common building materials block radio waves the most? You drive a remote-control car across a gymnasium floor while the transmitter sits behind different barriers. You test wood and glass and brick one at a time. For each material, you time how long the car takes to cross a set distance. A slower time means more signal interference. Wood caused the most interference. Glass came second. Brick caused the least.

Hypothesis

The hypothesis is that the cement (brick) will give the least interference and that the glass will have the most interference.

Method & Materials

You will place a remote control car's receiver back wheels on the edge of a basketball court, have someone hold the remote control transmitter outside the door of the gymnasium, and then place different materials between the transmitter and receiver to see which one causes the most interference.
You will need a stopwatch, a 27 MHz remote control car, 24 AA alkaline batteries, 6 9v batteries, cement (brick), wood, and glass.

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Results

The results of the experiment were surprising. The wood offered the most interference, and then the glass and the brick offered the least interference to the radio waves. This was different than the hypothesis, which was that the cement (brick) would give the least interference and that the glass would have the most interference.

Why do this project?

This science project is interesting because it helps us understand which materials can cause interference to remote control devices.

Also Consider

Experiment variations to consider include testing different materials, such as metal or plastic, and testing different frequencies of radio waves.

Full project details

Additional information and source material for this project are available below.

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