Courses

Undergraduate Core Materials Science Education

The following courses are recommended for a core materials science education for undergraduate students:

General Materials Science and Engineering – Complete 1 course
- Science of Engineering Materials (Me En 250)
- Science of Engineering Materials (Ch En 378)
Basic chemistry – Complete 1 course
- General Chemistry (Chem 105)
- General Chemistry (Chem 111)
Quantum mechanics and Thermodynamics – Complete 1 option
- Option 1 – Complete 1 course
  - Physical Chemistry for Engineers (Chem 467)
- Option 2 – Complete 2 courses
  - Physical Chemistry I (Chem 462)
  - Physical Chemistry II (Chem 463)
- Option 3 – Complete 2 groups
  - Group 1 – complete 1 course
    - Phys 222
    - Phys 581
  - Group 2 – complete 1 course
    - Phys 360

Graduate Core Materials Science Education

For a strong and diverse core materials science education for graduate students we recommend the following:

For students new to materials science, the General Materials Science and Engineering option listed above is recommended
Quantum Mechanics and Thermodynamics - complete the options listed above or find equivalent graduate courses
Mechanical Behavior of Materials (Mechanical Engineering 553) - Mechanical behavior of the various classes of materials
Kinetics of Materials (Mechanical Engineering 554) - Kinetic processes of materials

All Materials Science Courses

Below is a list of materials courses taught across different departments in the university.

Dept	Course	Course Name	Description
Chem	467	Physical Chemistry for Engineers	Quantum mechanics, atomic and molecular structure, spectroscopy, computational methods, statistical mechanics, thermodynamics and equilibria, states of matter, kinetic-molecular theory, kinetics.
Chem	514	Inorganic Chemistry	In-depth treatment of theoretical concepts in inorganic chemistry and solid state, organmetallic, and bioinorganic chemistry.
Chem	571	Polymer and Materials Chemistry	Taught every other year, offered Winter 2024
Chem	575	X-ray Diffraction	New course officially starting fall 2022
Chem	729R	Microfabrication/nanotechnology	Special topics courses that are taught every 2-3 years
Chem	729R	Surface chemistry and analysis	Special topics courses that are taught every 2-3 years
CH EN	378	Science of Engineering Materials	Fundamental principles of solid materials and their properties and behavior in engineering applications of metals, polymers, ceramics, and glasses.
CH EN	578	Polymer Science and Engineering	Foundation science and theory of polymer chemistry and physics and their implications in engineering applications. Topics include polymerization chemistry, structure-property relationships, polymer physics, and transport properties.
CH EN	593R	Colloids and Surface Science	Introduction to colloidal and interfacial interactions with an overview of theoretical treatments of colloidal processes, experimental methods, and industrial applications. Topics include flocculation, colloidal forces, surfactant, detergency, cohesion, adhesion, wetting, and electrokinetic phenomena. The course is intended seniors, and graduate students in engineering, chemistry, physics, materials science, and biological sciences.
CH EN	593R	Theory of Soft Materials	Specialized course (varies year to year) on topics of interest for the theory of soft materials including: equilibrium and non-equilibrium statistical mechanics, polymer and colloid physics, statistical field theories, parallel/GPU programming, simulation software development, numerical methods, and mathematical techniques (e.g. stochastic methods, perturbation theory, PDEs).
CH EN	593R/693R	Electrochemical Methods	The course focuses on developing a fundamental foundation for understanding and interpreting electrochemical measurements (e.g., cyclic voltammetry). Practical aspects of making electroanalytical measurements will also be covered.
EC EN	450	Introduction to Semiconductor Devices	Physics of electronic and optical solid state devices; includes semiconductor materials, bipolar and FET device physics and modeling, optical properties of semiconductors, and lasers.
EC EN	452	Experiments in Integrated Circuit Development	Measurements of key silicon properties and fabrication of integrated circuits.
EC EN	550	Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS)	Design, fabrication, and applications of MEMS. Mechanical properties governing their design and reliability and the processing technologies used to fabricate them.
EC EN	555	Optoelectronic Devices	Design, operation, and fabrication of modern optoelectronic devices, including photodiodes, photovoltaics, LEDs, and lasers.
EC EN	560	Electromagnetic Wave Theory	Principles and methods of modern electromagnetic wave theory: anisotropic media, dyadic green functions, Huygen's principle, contour integration methods, asymptotic integration. Applications in radiation and scattering.
EC EN	661	Advanced Optical Engineering	Theory and analysis of optical systems, including beam propagation, image formation, and modern optical systems.
EC EN	667	Electromagnetic Properties of Materials	Understand special topics in electromagnetics, Fall/Winter on even years
ME EN	250	Materials Science & Engineering	Principles and properties of solid materials and their behavior as applied to engineering.
ME EN	450	Engineering Materials: Selection for Design	Instruction emphasizes optimal materials selection techniques, practical materials-focused design, and an overview of commonly used engineering materials.
ME EN	456	Composite Material Design	Macro- and micro-mechanical analysis and design of uni- and multidirectional composite materials.
ME EN	553	Mechanical Behavior of Materials	Engineering methods for modeling deformation, fracture and fatigue of materials, including metals, polymers, composites and ceramics. Deformation modes include elastic, plastic, viscoelastic and creep.
ME EN	554	Kinetics of Materials	A unified treatment of kinetic processes in materials,including transport, chemical reactions, phase transformations, and microstructure evolution. Emphasis is placed on crystalline materials, but application to glasses, polymers and other material systems are discussed throughout. Specific topics include: kinetic theory of gases,rate theory, reaction kinetics, irreversible thermodynamics,diffusion in a broad spectrum of material classes (both atomistic mechanisms and phenomenological/continuum level models), influence of defects of diffusion, evolution of surfaces, phase transformations (solidification, nucleation and growth, spinodal decomposition), coarsening, grain growth, and morphological instabilities.
ME EN	556	Materials Modeling	Theory and application of various computer simulations to model, understand, and predict the properties of real materials. Specific topics include: first-principles atomistic models, empirical potential atomistic models, mesoscale models, and continuum finite element analysis.
ME EN	557	Materials in Extreme Environments	This class introduces students to models and empirical data that predict safe operational ranges for materials in high temperature, irradiated, and corrosive environments. Methods to measure material properties and performance in each environment are discussed, as well as the fundamental mechanisms that cause changes in material properties.
ME EN	558	Metallurgy	Fundamental principles of physical metallurgy and their application to design.
ME EN	651	Microstructure and Properties	Representations of inhomogenous material microstructure, crystallography, orientation distribution functions, Fourier representations, bounding theories for defect-insensitive properties, grain boundaries and grain boundary engineering, microstructure sensitive design.
MFGEN	331	Metals Processes	Capabilities and applications of common metal-processing methods, including relationships between part design, material, and process parameters.
MFGEN	355	Plastics Materials and Processing	Understanding plastic materials, properties, and uses. Survey of plastic-manufacturing processes. Designing plastic products and manufacturing systems.
MFGEN	465	Composite Materials and Processes	Structure, processing, properties, and uses of composite materials, including various manufacturing methods and the relationship between properties and fabrication.
Physics	581	Solid-State Physics	Introduction to the physics of solids. Crystal structure and symmetry, X-ray diffraction, lattice vibrations, metals and semiconductors, superconductivity, thermal properties, magnetic properties, and dielectric and optical properties.
Physics	583	Physics of Nanostructures, Surfaces, and Interfaces	Properties of nanostructures, surfaces, and interfaces; experimental methods. Applications to emerging problems and opportunities in science and technology. Emphasis on concepts.
Physics	585	Thin-film Physics	Preparation, characterization, use, and special properties of modern thin films; interdisciplinary treatment. Of interest to students in applied physics and engineering.
Physics	586	Transmission Electron Microscopy for Physical Science and Engineering	Practical and theoretical aspects of sample preparation, basic and advanced imaging, electron diffraction, and other analytical materials characterization techniques on the transmission electron microscope (TEM).
Physics	587	Physics of Semiconductor Devices	Device physics, with an in-depth study of the MOS transistor and other nanoscale computing devices.
Physics	588	Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) for Physical Science and Engineering	Theoretical aspects of sample preparation, basic and advanced imaging, X-ray energy dispersive spectrometry, and other analytical materials characterization techniques on the scanning electron microscope (SEM).
Physics	781	Modern Theory of Solids	Quantum theory of solids, emphasizing the unifying principles of symmetry, energy-band theory, dynamics of electrons and of periodic lattices, and cooperative phenomena.