Is there such a thing as computational Material Science?

[myranaira]

I was wondering because I'm interested in getting a Materials science graduate degree, but was wondering if my options would be limited to experimental work. What sort of work would comp. materials science involve? My rough guess would be creating models/simulations of materials as opposed to creating them in the lab, to test for things like how they react to stress, but I'd like some more information. Also, since materials science is pretty interdisciplinary does anyone know if computational research would tie into a more "traditional" field such as mech. engineering or physics?

 

[UltrafastPED]

I took a course in soft-body simulations which was offered by the Materials Science & Engineering department. There are lots of situations which require good models ... computer time is much cheaper than clean room time.

This type of course can appear in physics, astronomy, chemistry, engineering, etc. You would need to look closely at the programs which interest you.

 

[jasonRF]

Yes - I only know because I ran across it awhile back in some popular science type publication (cannot recall which). Anyway, here is a professor that specializes in it.

http://www.mse.cornell.edu/people/profile.cfm?netid=rgh27

jason

 

[radium]

Most definitely. I actually work on the more theoretical physics side of a theoretical chemistry/materials science research group. We model both real and proposed material using computational tools like density functional theory and molecular dynamics. I know of many other groups that do similar work.

 

[Matrix0]

Yes, there is definitely such a thing as computational materials science. In fact, it is a rapidly growing field within materials science that combines principles from both materials science and computer science. Computational materials science involves using computer simulations and modeling techniques to study the properties and behavior of materials. This can include everything from predicting the properties of new materials to understanding how materials behave under different conditions.

Some examples of work in computational materials science could include developing new algorithms or software to model material properties, using molecular dynamics simulations to study the behavior of materials at the atomic level, or using machine learning techniques to predict the properties of new materials.

As materials science is an interdisciplinary field, computational research can definitely tie into more traditional fields such as mechanical engineering or physics. In fact, many materials science graduate programs offer a specialization in computational materials science. So if you are interested in pursuing a graduate degree in materials science, there are definitely options for computational work. I would recommend researching specific programs to see if they offer a focus on computational materials science and reaching out to faculty members to learn more about their research in this area.