Student-led · Open hardware · Hands-on learning

Make abstract
ideas tangible.

OpenApparatus develops open-source hardware for hands-on physics and mathematics. Explore a demonstration or discuss an activity for your classroom or community program.

Request a workshop Apply for classroom equipment Start a chapter
Dual-tube Lenz’s law demonstrator with a copper tube, a clear control tube, and printed end caps.
Physics / 01Magnetic brakingMake the invisible visible.
Two differently shaped drum models, one black and one red, with clear membranes and perimeter screws.
Mathematics / 02Shape & vibrationEducational prototype

Get Involved

Choose how to get started.

Apply for classroom equipment, request a hands-on session, or bring a local chapter to your community.

Equipment access

Choose a way to use the apparatus.

Assembled classroom beta units

Public school educators can apply for donated, assembled dual-tube Lenz’s Law demonstrators. Quantities are limited, with priority for Title I schools and underfunded public districts. Fulfillment depends on manufacturing availability.

View the beta program

Build from open files

Explore printable STL parts, materials lists, and assembly guidance. Choose a design and follow its build and safety instructions.

Choose a design

University and community partners: discuss demonstration and equipment arrangements with us.

The hardware

Explore physics and mathematics through making.

Choose a question. Explore the design. Make it your own.

Physics: Lenz’s Law visualizers

Three ways to explore magnetic braking
Dual-tube Lenz’s law demonstrator with a copper tube, a clear control tube, and printed end caps.

Compare the drop

Dual-tube

Compare a magnet descending through copper with a nonmagnetic control weight falling through a clear tube.

Build guide ↗STL files ↗
See-through demonstrator with a ring magnet and a yellow control ring surrounding copper tubes inside clear outer tubes.

Watch the motion

See-through

Watch a ring magnet and a control ring descend around copper tubes, with both paths visible through clear outer tubes.

Build guide ↗STL files ↗

See how the demonstrator comes together.

Follow the Lenz’s Law demonstrator assembly procedure in a short video.

Watch assembly on YouTube

Browse the physics project repository

Two differently shaped drum models, one black and one red, with clear membranes and perimeter screws.
Explore geometry and vibration with two differently shaped, 3D-printed drum models.

A new family of apparatus

Mathematics: can you hear the shape of a drum?

Educational prototype

Explore geometry and vibration through two differently shaped, 3D-printed drum models. Build, compare, and discuss how mathematical ideas connect with physical experiments.

These models illustrate mathematically isospectral shapes. Membrane tension and construction affect the actual sound of physical builds.

Build guide ↗STL files ↗

From curiosity to investigation

A starting point for hands-on learning.

A proposed introductory session combines prediction, observation, explanation, and a simple design discussion. We can discuss the format with your staff before scheduling.

Example Lenz’s Law activity

  1. Predict

    Which object will arrive first?

  2. Observe

    Compare the two descents.

  3. Explain

    Discuss what could cause the difference.

  4. Design

    Suggest a change to the apparatus or investigation.

Explore workshop formats Browse activities & videos
Dual-tube demonstrator mounted between two white towers on a motorized flip-test fixture.
Development testing of the dual-tube demonstrator.

Inside the development process

Built, tested,
and refined.

The dual-tube design developed through repeated changes to materials, end caps, and tube retention. A custom motorized fixture was built to repeatedly flip the apparatus during development testing.

Watch the 4,000-cycle test

YouTube Short · Development testing of the dual-tube design

Read the design and testing notes

The distribution record

Beta hardware distribution

See where beta hardware has been distributed, by U.S. state and country. Distribution records do not by themselves establish classroom use or learning outcomes.

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Make something together

Build a local chapter

Bring students together to build open-source apparatus and support hands-on learning in your community. Tell us about your team and what you would like to contribute.

Start a chapter

Our mission

Connect ideas
with reality.

Every student should have the chance to build, test, and understand how things work.

OpenApparatus helps remove financial barriers to physics, mathematics, and engineering education through openly shared designs and hands-on learning. Our student-led initiative connects classroom ideas with real apparatus: print a part, assemble a demonstration, and investigate for yourself.

We invite chapters, university lecturers, and nonprofits serving low-income communities to bring these experiences to more learners.

Meet the founder

Jonathan Liu

Student founder

Studying physics and mathematics made me want to build models that bring abstract ideas to life. I designed our Lenz’s Law Demonstrator to explore magnetic braking and make the effect easier to see and explain.

After piloting a hands-on 3D printing workshop for local fourth graders, I founded OpenApparatus to help more students experience that same excitement of making something real. The goal is simple: give more learners the tools to become builders.

Our educational philosophy

Tools that support your teaching.

Our apparatus supports educators’ teaching. Activities can be adapted to a course or community program, with educators guiding the learning goals.