Lab courses are added to better understand the theory courses. Experiments allow us to feel and play the physical phenomenon. The lessons learned in the lab need to be recorded, preserved and shared for understanding and future use. For that purpose, all labs demand from the scientists and the researchers to report their findings in lab reports. If no record is made, all effort used to perform the experiment is lost.
Each individual learns from the experiment in his unique way. Therefore, lab reports of the same experiment by different researchers can have different findings. It is fun reading the many faces of reality from different angles. Quality researchers present their findings in fun way that instigates others to perform research in that field. The quality of oral and written reports presented by working professionals is invariably one of the criteria used by their superiors in performance evaluations, making the ability to write a good, professional-quality report an essential and marketable skill. For these reasons, training and practice in report writing are important parts of your education.
The laboratory report is written for the convenience of the reader. Each section of the report should have headlines and sections, arranged in easy-to-understand sequence. The laboratory report describes what procedures you followed, what observations you made, what data you gathered, and what did you concluded as a result. The is a performance document, i.e., proof that you understood what you did and that you can apply it in practical situations.
Clarity and precision of language and data presentation are essential in a laboratory report.
The content of each of the sections in a laboratory report is described below.
Title that describes the report
Student Registration number and name
Date when the experiment was performed
Registeration numbers and names of other group members
Course number, course name and section
Briefly state the objective of the experiment. You can copy the objectives written in the laboratory manual or lab instruction. The objective should state the problem that your procedure and data attempts to answer. The section should inform the reader precisely why the project was undertaken.
The introduction and theory section explains the key concepts that are needed to understand the experiment. These concepts will help understand the analysis and discussion sections later. Write the key equations and concepts here.
Describe how the experiment was performed? What components are used and in which way?Explain all the wiring connections and setup details. Describe the procedure step-by-step. Provide details so you or another person can perform the experiment later by following the instructions in your lab report. Write it in past tense as you carried out the experiment. Copying the provided lab manual verbatim is not acceptable.
Report the exact observations of your experiment here. This is the raw data you recorded in the lab. If it is on a separate page, attach it to the lab report in hard form. The data presented in this section will be used in the results section later. If a simulation was performed, attach the signal waveforms generated from the computer simulation program.
This section describes how the raw data was analyzed. The final results of the data analysis are reported in this section, using figures, graphs, tables or other convenient forms. These tables, charts, graphs or other figures are then used to discuss the outcome of the experiment or project.
If there was very little or no manipulation of the data after the experiment, skip this section. Include this section if you applied any mathematical transformations on the raw data to make it easier to understand and interpret.
In this section you interpret the outcome of the experiment. The information from the data analysis is examined and explained. You should describe, analyze and explain (not just restate) all your results. This section should answer the question "What do the data tell us?" Compare your results with expected behavior, interpreting the results you obtained compared with the theoretical prediction. Explain any unexpected behavior. If you can't arrive at a reasonable explanation for your results, suggest what parts of the experiment may need to be performed a second time.
Base all conclusions on your actual results. Explain the meaning of the experiment and the implications of your results. Examine the outcome in the light of the stated objectives. This section should answer the question "So what?" Seek to make conclusions in a broader context in the light of the results. If there are any implications for software engineers, discuss your recommendations.
Include source code of the programs you created, using a Courier New font of size 10-12.