Test students' ability to design a complete experimental research project to develop and characterize a graphene–quantum-dot hybrid photodetector optimized for near-infrared (900–1700 nm) operation, including rationale for materials selection and synthesis (graphene quality, NIR quantum-dot composition, ligand strategies, deposition methods), device architecture and physics (heterostructure design, contacts, optical coupling, gain mechanisms), detailed fabrication steps (substrate prep, transfer, lithography, deposition, annealing, encapsulation), measurement and characterization protocols (spectral responsivity, specific detectivity D*, noise spectral density, dark current, temporal response, calibration and error analysis), data analysis and modeling approaches for performance optimization (signal-to-noise analysis, extraction of responsivity and detectivity, noise source identification, statistical reproducibility, parameter optimization), and considerations for controls, scalability, and safety.