Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Science and Engineering
- Fall January 10
- Spring July 1
- Pullman: Yes
- 550 TOEFL Minimum score
- 80 TOEFLI Minimum score
Degree Description:
This program offers a PhD in Materials Science and Engineering.
Admission Requirements:
No additional requirements.
Student Learning Outcome:
All graduates will be able to:
- Students will be prepared for professional careers, the program will provide a variety of experiences that will help students to:
- Achieve expertise in fundamental areas of Physics, Chemistry, and Engineering essential for the modern Materials Scientist and Engineer.
- Apply theory and methodologies within these areas to conduct independent research which addresses scientific and engineering problems of broad materials interest.
- Effectively communicate the results of their research in peer reviewed journal articles and in oral presentations to faculty and students in the Program and at local, regional and national conferences.
- Become effective members of the scientific and engineering community by participating and taking leadership roles in professional organizations and providing service on local, regional and national levels.
- To help students to become effective researchers and contribute to scientific and engineering advancements, the program aims to help students to:
- Become independent, motivated researchers in an interdisciplinary area of study with the ability to recognize and address important scientific problems and to make original contributions to the solution of these problems.
- Complete a set of core courses to introduce them to the fundamentals essential to an interdisciplinary course of study.
- Be exposed to, and participate in, wide ranging lectures that feature current topics from each of the core disciplines of the Program- Chemistry, Physics, and Engineering
- Present an original proposal summarizing the existing literature in their area of study, posing an extant question or hypothesis, and presenting their plans for investigating and advancing the state of knowledge in this area.
- Conduct independent research using sound methods of data collection and analysis.
- Effectively present the results of their research in written and oral presentations.
- To enhance the prestige and quality of the graduate program, we aim to:
- Attract and retain high quality graduate students, increase the number of graduate students in our program, develop a balanced diverse student body.
- Mentor graduate students to enable them to complete their degrees in a timely manner and ensure that students receive feedback on academic progress.
- Prepare students to successfully compete for academic, industrial, and government lab positions on graduation by developing professional and research skills.
- Enhance faculty participation and communication of the Program both internally and externally to have support from all stakeholders.
Faculty Members:
Bandyopadhyay, Amit, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Laser processing, additive manufacturing, orthopedic biomaterials, hard coatings and aero/space materials.
Banerjee, Soumik, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Next-generation lithium and sodium batteries, thin-film photovoltaic solar cells, modeling nanoscale transport and molecular self-assembly, multiscale modeling of materials and interfaces.
Biswas, Nandita
Serves as: co-chair or member on graduate committee
Bose, Susmita, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Resorbable ceramics and composite in bone tissue engineering, nanoparticle and scaffolds in drug delivery, nanoscale coating of implants, advanced synthesis, processing.
Clark, Aurora, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Multiscale Computational Chemistry of Heavy Elements; graph-theoretical methods applied to intermolecular networks.
Collins, Brian, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Organic Electronics. Optoelectronic properties of organic materials. Resonant X-ray techniques as they relate to solar cells, transistors, batteries, sensors. Nano-mesoscale structures. Film formation and the origins of emergent optoelectronic properties.
Dutta, Indranath, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Multi-physics phenomena in materials, materials reliability for microelectronics and photovoltaics, electrically-activated meso-to-nanoscale manufacturing.
Field, David P, Ph.D.
Serves as: chair on graduate committee
Research Interests
Ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy, metal deformation and recrystallization, grain boundary and interface structure, metallic thin films, structure/properties relationships.
Gu, Yi, Ph.D.
Iannelli, Joseph, Ph.D.
Research Interests
High performance engineering and scientific computing, minimal storage iterative numerical linear algebra solvers, theoretical and computational fluid dynamics, finite element algorithms and analysis, numerical analysis, software development, aerodynamics, aeronautical propulsion (including gas turbines, ramjets, and scramjets), chemically reacting aerospace flows.
Kessler, Michael R, Ph.D.
Serves as: chair on graduate committee
Research Interests
Processing and characterization of polymer composites, multifunctional materials, and bio-renewable polymers.
Knoblauch, Michael, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Plant Cell Biology and the physiology of plant tissues, especially the phloem
Leachman, Jacob W, Ph.D.
Serves as: chair on graduate committee
Research Interests
Hydrogen, deuterium, tritium; hydrogen and nuclear energy (fission and fusion), hydrogen fueling of aerospace vehicles, thermophysical property modeling and measurement, energy storage and conversion, cryogenics, unmanned aerial vehicles.
Lee, David, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Prof. Lee’s research program at WSU centers around in-situ ultra-high-vacuum Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM) in the investigation of chemical changes that occur when material surfaces interact with light and with gas-phase reactants.
Lin, David, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Integrated mechanical properties of skeletal muscle and spinal reflexes. Multiscale modeling of muscle contractile properties.
Lin, Yuehe, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Synthesis and characterization of nanomaterials, materials and devices for sensing, bioimaging, and drug delivery; materials and systems for water monitoring and treatment; materials for fuel cells, batteries and supercapacitors.
Lynn, Kelvin G, Ph.D.
Serves as: chair on graduate committee
Research Interests
Radiation detectors, positron studies including variable energy beams, crystal growth, defects in semiconductors and metals; photovoltaic materials; thermal stimulated spectroscopies.
McCloy, John S, Ph.D.
Serves as: chair on graduate committee
Research Interests
Ceramics and metals, degradation mechanisms, effect of disorder on properties, glass composition/structure/property models, functional properties, advanced characterization methods, applications to nuclear waste forms and sensors.
Mesarovic, Sinisa, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Multiscale modeling, phase field models, dislocation plasticity, phase transformations and metal-ceramic bonding, capillary flows, granular materials, carbon nanotubes.
Muhunthan, Balasingam, Ph.D.
Research Interests
•Thermomechanics and Constitutive Modeling
•Bifurcations and instabilities in geomechanics
•Microstructure characterization and simulation of geomaterials
•Pore-scale modeling of fluid flow
•Micropiles
•Fundamentals of soil behavior: critical state soil mechanics, micromechanics of soils, and physico-chemical behavior of clays
Norton, M Grant, Ph.D.
Serves as: chair on graduate committee
Research Interests
Ceramic materials, nanotechnology, alternative energy.
Saad, Messiha Todary, Ph.D.
Serves as: co-chair on graduate committee
Scudiero, Louis, Ph.D.
Song, Min Kyu, Ph.D.
Serves as: chair on graduate committee
Research Interests
Batteries and fuel cells, electrochemistry of materials, energy storage and conversion, nanomaterials, functional ceramics.
Wall, Nathalie, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Environmental behavior of radionuclides (actinides, lanthanides, and fission products): applications for nuclear waste managements, site remediations, and nuclear forensics.
Yadama, Vikram, Ph.D.
Yoo, Choong-Shik, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Extreme materials research at the pressure-temperature conditions of the Earth’s and Jovian planetary interiors; Discovery and characterization of new and novel materials formed under high pressure.
Zbib, Hussein M, Ph.D.
Serves as: chair on graduate committee
Research Interests
Mechanics (multiscale modeling, numerical analysis, plasticity, damage, fracture, composites), materials (nanomaterials, defects, radiation effect, dislocation theory, crystal plasticity).
Zhang, Jinwen, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Synthesizing and exploring new polymer materials from renewable feedstock, toughening, reinforcing and application development of biobased polymer materials.
Zhong, Weihong, Ph.D.
Research Interests
Polymers, nanocomposites, multifunctional materials, biomaterials, renewable materials, battery materials.