Stability, current-carrying capacity, fabrication methods, and the critical temperature at which materials become superconducting are some of the areas in which engineers are seeking the advances necessary to implement these exciting new materials. Composite materials are a mixture of materials having widely different characteristics. The resulting composite materials are designed to exhibit properties superior to their individual parent materials. Frequently, composites are ceramic or metal fiber reinforced materials with a matrix of polymers, ceramics or metals. To the materials engineer, these composite materials involve a wide range of challenges in design and fabrication.
Materials engineers create materials from the atomic level up to finished products.
The atomic make-up, crystalline structure, and crystal morphology must be tailored to optimize the macroscopic properties of the material. Engineers utilize chemical, thermal, and mechanical processing methods to manipulate material design. Engineers must use the natural tendencies of various atomic species to integrate them into enhanced materials designs. The materials science and engineering program is an interdisciplinary approach to materials. The curriculum carries particular emphasis in the areas of the structure of materials, mechanical and electronic properties, and composites.