Design and Validation of a Virtual Reality Scenery for Learning Radioactivity: HalDron Project

Immersive technologies could be used to teach more complex concepts, particularly those which are hard to conceptualize related to science. The present paper presents how a team comprised of a Physics professor and some undergraduate Physics and Mathematics students with basic knowledge of C#/C +  + design developed a Virtual Reality (VR) experience by using Blender and Unity to create an immersive experience through the use of Oculus Quest 2 headset, the objective was teaching the basic concepts of natural radioactivity and nucleosynthesis to undergraduate students with the help of a 3D modeled Virtual Learning Companion to test if immersive technologies would help to better understand and retain the information through an experience not available to them in experimental laboratories. An intervention was conducted with 143 undergraduate students to validate the system as a learning method. The students who participated in the testing received a prior knowledge assessment through a Google Forms test which was emailed to them, then experienced a quick virtual reality immersion (less than 10 min) and finally received a new theoretical assessment the following day after the VR experience along a user experience test. The results show that the student’s average grades went from 4.9 to 9.8 (of 15 points) and a high completion rate, even among those unfamiliar with VR or head-mounted displays.