For my undergraduate physics thesis, I studied the power output of the Stirling engine.
The goal of my research was to determine the efficacy of the Senft model, the salient thermodynamic model for the Stirling engine, in predicting the actual power output of an alpha-type engine. To accomplish this, I designed and machined select engine components that would allow me to manipulate key engine parameters to independently determine their effects on torque and power curves, which I could then compare against the corresponding effects theorized by the model.