Support the Olin Plasma Engineering Lab!

We’re an undergraduate-led research lab founded by students who believe that electric propulsion (EP) technology should be accessible to everyone.

We develop low-cost plasma thrusters and ion sources to perform cutting-edge research. As a lab we publish and present research on our progress, demonstrating how EP technology can be successfully used in engineering education. 

Our work has been peer-reviewed and published by the Journal of Electric Propulsion and ASEE, and OPEL students have presented at AAS and the International Electric Propulsion Conference.

Bringing electric propulsion to undergraduate education is ambitious, challenging and expensive. We have benefited greatly from the generosity of the scientific community, and are looking to expand our team and capabilities. 

We’d love to have your help!

This year, we’re looking to build small-scale power processing units, design a new thruster, and attend more conferences. Your help enables our team to keep exploring amazing bounds in the field of undergraduate research!

Fundraising Goal: $5,000