MRC Research Areas

 

Graduate Center  for Materials Research
101 Straumanis-James Hall
William Fahrenholtz (Director )

            The Graduate Center for Materials Research was established for the purpose of multidisciplinary research on materials and to provide improved centralized laboratories and specialized equipment for faculty and students involved in materials research.  The Center provides graduate students in many academic departments (e.g. Materials Science and Engineering, Chemical & Biological Engineering, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Chemistry, Biological Sciences and Physics) with advanced training in materials related engineering and science research.
            The research conducted in the Center ranges from fundamental science to applied engineering and includes the development, evaluation, application, and understanding of metals, polymers, biomaterials, electronic materials and composites.
            Accomplishments from the Center include:  glass microspheres for treatment of liver cancer, transparent composites for windows/armor, environmentally friendly corrosion coatings, laser glasses, epitaxial chiral surfaces, biomineralization, fuel cell electrolytes and sealing materials, electrochemical biosensors, multi-layer nanocapacitors, enhanced magnetic materials, and thin film electromagnetic probes.
            The Center is located in Straumanis-James Hall, a four-story building with 30,000 square feet of laboratory and office space.  The Center contains the modern equipment needed for research on materials development, characterization and evaluation, and for measuring common mechanical, thermal, electrical, and optical properties.  It contains specialized and adaptable experimental facilities.

  • Electrochemical deposition and corrosion
  • Glass melting and processing
  • Nanomaterial
  • Plasma deposition of material
  • Composites
  • Microfabrication including sputter deposition, evaporation, reactive ion etching and photolithography equipment
  • Characterization of materials by 
      • x-ray diffraction 
      • scanning and transmission electron microscopy
      • focused ion beam (FIB) microscopy 
      • scanning tunneling and atomic force microscopy
      • thermal analysis
      • optical techniques
      • x-ray photoelectron

       The Center has an active interest in industrial research and economic development suitable for graduate and undergraduate student education that falls within the technical expertise of  the staff.