Cluster Hiring Initiative

Growth, Processing and Characterization of Advanced Materials

While many eras in human history are classified by either the materials used (the Bronze Age, the Iron Age) or the applications they fostered (the Silicon Age), recent discoveries exemplify how little we understand about controlling the synthesis and growth of many materials. Our lack of understanding is even greater when the controlled growth is targeting the enhancement of particular properties or synergistic properties found in composites from specific, unknown, interactions. Thus, materials science and engineering is a broad, interdisciplinary field that draws on chemistry, physics and engineering. It bridges research from the molecular level to large-scale applications. Many of the technological achievements of the last 1000 years have resulted from the discovery and development of new materials, this field of study has had an immeasurable impact on human civilization and will continue to for years to come.

One new material is 6 times lighter than steel—and an incredible 130 times stronger. Another can protect everything from carpets to automobiles to medical devices from the harmful effects of corrosion. Still others are being used to build some of the world's most advanced superconducting magnets, which scientists use to perform cutting-edge research in physics, biology, bioengineering, chemistry, geochemistry, biochemistry, materials science and engineering, and are also applied to new life-saving medical diagnostics. These are just a few of the materials currently being developed at Florida State University that have the potential to reshape our world.

Yet, researchers have a limited understanding of how to properly control the creation and production of the next generation of technological materials. This limitation is rooted in particular properties found in existing materials, and the way these properties interact when a new material is introduced or manipulated on smaller and smaller length-scales. Furthermore, when a specific property of a material is targeted for enhancement, this limited knowledge can significantly impede such an endeavor.

FSU is recognized as a research leader in nanomaterials, nanocomposites and superconductivity, and for its agility in moving new materials from discovery to production. The Cluster on Growth, Processing and Characterization of Advanced Materials will strengthen this foundation and provide additional expertise in materials research. Strategic areas of potential growth include biomaterials, multifunctional materials and thin film materials.

This interdisciplinary program involves all five of the university’s engineering departments—chemical and biomedical engineering, civil and environmental engineering, electrical and computer engineering, industrial engineering, and mechanical engineering—as well as physics, chemistry and the School of Computational Science. A cluster of such breadth will be capable of not just conceptualizing new ideas in materials science, but carrying them through the design, analysis, production and dissemination processes. The cluster will be poised to respond rapidly to breaking developments in this field and stay at the leading edge of new materials with unique and exceptional properties.

 

Executive Committee

Mechanical Engineering: Justin Schwartz
Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering: Chuck Zhang
Physics: James Brooks
Computational Science and Mathematics: Max Gunzburger
Chemical and Biomedical Engineering: Rufina Alamo