The Minor in Materials Science & Engineering
Materials Science & Engineering (MSE) is an interdisciplinary field that applies the fundamental knowledge of the physical sciences to create engineering innovations. In general, the term engineering refers to actively designing a system for a given application; MSE enables the design of systems from the atoms up. MSE focuses on the interrelationship between a material's structure (from the subatomic level to the macro scale) and the properties or behaviors that the material exhibits. Materials synthesis and processing techniques enable engineers to control and change the material structure in order to obtain the desired properties. Understanding the structure–properties–processing relationship requires a fundamental knowledge of the underlying chemistry and physics, and it is key to obtaining materials with the desired performance for engineering applications in a wide variety of fields, from computing to medicine to energy.
The minor in MSE builds upon the fundamental insights into material structure and properties gained through required introductory courses in chemistry and materials science. Students then select at least two courses from specialization "pick lists" to gain depth in a particular application area. A free elective provides the opportunity to gain additional depth in the fundamentals or exposure to another application area.
For more information, students should contact the advisor for the Minor in Materials Science & Engineering: Professor Katharine Flores (MEMS).
Some courses have prerequisites. Students will be approved for the minor after discussing appropriate course selection with the advisor for the minor.
Requirements
Units required: 17
| Courses | Units |
|---|---|
| Three required courses | 8 |
| Two courses from specialization "pick lists" | 6 |
| One free elective | 3 |
| Total Units | 17 |
Required Courses*
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Chem 111A | General Chemistry I | 3 |
| Chem 151 | General Chemistry Laboratory I | 2 |
| or MEMS 205 | Mechanics and Materials Science Laboratory | |
| MEMS 3610 | Materials Science | 3 |
| or EECE 305 | Materials Science | |
| Total Units | 8 | |
- *
Students majoring in geology, geophysics, geochemistry or environmental earth science may substitute EPSc 352 Earth Materials for the required combination of Chem 111A and Chem 151. In this case, EPSc 352 may not be used to fulfill the specialization pick list or free elective requirements.
Specialization "Pick Lists"
Students should select at least two courses (6 units) from any one of the following categories:
Structural Materials
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| MEMS 5506 | Experimental Methods in Solid Mechanics | 3 |
| MEMS 5507 | Fatigue and Fracture Analysis | 3 |
| MEMS 5601 | Mechanical Behavior of Materials | 3 |
| MEMS 5605 | Mechanical Behavior of Composites | 3 |
| MEMS 5615 | Metallurgy and Design of Alloys | 3 |
| MEMS 5616 | Defects in Materials | 3 |
Electronic/Optical Materials
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Chem 543 | Physical Properties of Quantum Nanostructures | 3 |
| ESE 429 | Basic Principles of Quantum Optics and Quantum Information | 3 |
| ESE 436 | Semiconductor Devices | 3 |
| ESE 531 | Nano and Micro Photonics ** | 3 |
| MEMS 463 | Nanotechnology Concepts and Applications | 3 |
| MEMS 5617 | Advanced Study of Solid-State Electronics | 3 |
| MEMS 5801 | Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems I | 3 |
| Physics 472 | Solid State Physics | 3 |
Biomaterials/Soft Materials
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| BME 479 | Biofabrication & Medical Devices | 3 |
| BME 432 | Physics of Biopolymers | 3 |
| or BME 532 | Physics of Biopolymers and Bioinspired Polymers | |
| BME 523 | Biomaterials Science | 3 |
| Chem 452 | Synthetic Polymer Chemistry | 3 |
| Chem 462 | Synthetic Polymer Chemistry Laboratory | 3 |
| MEMS 5606 | Soft Nanomaterials | 3 |
| MEMS 5607 | Introduction to Polymer Blends and Composites | 3 |
| MEMS 5608 | Introduction to Polymer Science and Engineering | 3 |
| MEMS 5613 | Biomaterials Processing | 3 |
| MEMS 5614 | Polymeric Materials Synthesis and Modification | 3 |
Materials for Energy and Environmental Technologies
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Chem 426 | Inorganic Electrochemistry and Photochemistry ** | 3 |
| EECE 504 | Aerosol Science and Technology | 3 |
| EECE 505 | Aquatic Chemistry | 3 |
| EECE 574 | Electrochemical Engineering | 3 |
Natural Materials
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| EPSc 336 | Minerals and Rocks in the Environment | 3 |
| EPSc 567 | Planetary Materials | 3 |
- **
Offered sporadically.
Free Electives
To complete the minor, students may select one additional course (3 units) from the categories above or from the list of courses below:
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Chem 465 | Solid-State and Materials Chemistry *** | 3 |
| MEMS 4101 | Manufacturing Processes | 3 |
| MEMS 5102 | Materials Selection in Design | 3 |
| MEMS 5610 | Quantitative Materials Science & Engineering | 3 |
| MEMS 5612 | Atomistic Modeling of Materials | 3 |
| Physics 217 | Introduction to Quantum Physics | 3 |
| Physics 318 | Introduction to Quantum Physics II | 3 |
| Physics 537 | Kinetics of Materials | 3 |
Students may also fulfill the free elective with 3 credits of MEMS 400 Independent Study for an independent study project on an MSE topic. The project topic and description must be preapproved by the advisor for the minor.
- ***
Offered sporadically.