LASE Group

The LASE group is a dynamic bunch of individuals. As a new member, here are some things that will help you acclimate to the group.

Organization coming soon

Acronyms

We all use our initials to designate ourselves in system status slides and other group-internal proceedings.
LASE: Laboratory for Advanced Semiconductor Epitaxy
FC: fancy coffee, typically meaning a coffee break at the Coffee Bean at the domain. Used to refer to Sodade Coffeehouse before it closed (before Team Foxtrot entered).
(I predict FC will also come to mean fancy chair (rarely) as 2013 progresses.)
RTFM: Read the f— manual!
OSGM: Old-style group meeting
NSGM: New-style group meeting
PC: politically correct, or personal computer
CF: Conflat, a type of vacuum flange
PL: photoluminescence
QFH/QFIH: Quick, fast, and in a hurry
LT-PL: Low temperature photoluminescence
COB: Close of business (which is never for grad students)

Words/Phrases

Nominal: how things should be. As experimentalists, things are hardly how they should be.
Suboptimal: Not ideal or nominal, used often as a euphemism for bad.
Germane: relevant.
Bless your heart: what old people say before saying something non-PC
Style and substance: Echo and Bravo nickname
Obviously: like, totally
Team Bravo: The original LASE group members who have all graduated as of February/May 2012.
Team Echo: The second round of LASE students, who have all graduated as of May 2015.
Team Foxtrot: The students who entered in 2012.
Vacuum gremlins: the real reason there can't be water in the vacuum systems. At best, cause unexplainable signals to occur. At worst, cause problems of varying degree.
Swagelok/swage: a type of air and water line hardware.
Pink streamers: a potential safety addition to the lab that would be affixed to hazards people hit their head on such as the Bravo load chamber and Echo transfer arm.
Austin _____ (in the context of a store): It seems like there is an Austin everything, e.g. Austin Bolt, Austin Seal, Austin Metal & Iron, Austin Java, Austin Diner, Austin Auditors, Austin Books & Comic, Austin Shoe Hospital, Austin Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Austin Canoe and Kayak, etc.
- Note: there are also a number of "Capitol ______" e.g. Capitol Scientific.
- There used to be Austin Cryopumps, but now it's part of Oxford Instruments.
One/zero: a reference to whatever item you are trying to find in lab being either: Zero - on the floor (below knee level); One - at eye level for someone, which is likely just above or below your eye level.
Sarcastic swan: a hand gesture to let Rodolfo know a conversation has turned sarcastic.
Shampoo-Banana: Sethism for his hometown.
Coach: Nickname for James S. Harris, professor at Stanford.
DABM (sounds like dab-em): David A.B. Miller, professor at Stanford.
Wistey: Professor at Notre Dame and fellow MBE guru.
Roll over: Used to describe pressure. When the pressure goes up due to outgassing, and then 'roll overs' and starts to decrease, like a tire rolling over a big speed bump.
For those of you scoring at home...: If you're keeping track....
For your edification: A point that is good to know but usually not the most relevant to the current conversation.
Like Rodolfo learning what a Snooki is: analogy for an important realization.
Your figure doesn't have axes: always label your axes!

Culture

Roughly half of the group uses Apple laptops, the other half PCs with Windows, Linux, or something.
Roughly half of the group is vegetarian or vegan.
Ask as many questions as you can manage. Everyone is friendly.
If you sit in the back cubicle, you might start talking to yourself...
Never wear gloves outside of the cleanroom. Keep your gloves on until the final exit door of the cleanroom.
Back up your data.
Soda/Pop/Coke: the group has a fixation with what people call carbonated non-alcoholic beverages: http://i.imgur.com/OXcMckZ.png
For reference, most of us are dog people, but we like cats on roombas: https://www.facebook.com/MAXtheRoombaCAT
Some LASE members aren't familiar with pop culture. One member has had to ask what a snooki is, and what a magoat is (after hearing totes magoats).
We do a "Basketball Wars" bracket challenge in the spring.

Other

Great Scott! There are two Scotts, SJM and SDS. The more seasoned grad student is the younger of the two, so saying old Scott (and younger/new Scott) isn't crystal clear. The easiest thing is to call SDS his nickname, Siff.
Confused with all the bolt/flange/etc. sizes? Overtime you will hear the same numbers again and again and come to learn what size things are. 5/16 and 9/16 are quite common for bolts and fittings. Common flanges are 2.75" and 4.5".
On weekends, holidays, and after a certain time each day you will need to sign in at the gate to get to MER (Building 160).

Ig Nobel ideas

A study of the decomposition of cardboard and paper products