When students first experience spherical harmonics, they sometimes find it challenging to visualize how the function varies as $\theta$ and $\phi$ change. This activity helps students better understand how each component of a spherical harmonic affects the function's phase and magnitude across the sphere. Groups also have the opportunity to compare their spherical harmonic to other balloon representations to determine how spherical harmonics change for different values of $\ell$ and $m$.


Personal Tools