Materials Science and Engineering Research
Centers
Maryland NanoCenter
When materials and structures are created and engineered at the nanometer scale approaching atomic dimensions they can display fundamentally new properties and behavior as a direct result of their small size. Research in nanoscale science and engineering is unveiling new worlds of ideas and applications, as well as promoting advances in miniaturization. The Maryland NanoCenter brings together cross-disciplinary groups of outstanding scientists and engineers to advance the frontiers of science and to develop nanotechnologies which improve our world. Learn more about the Maryland Nanocenter »
Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC)
The MRSEC is a major program of
the National Science Foundation's Division
of Materials Research (DMR) to advance materials
research. The MRSEC on the Maryland campus is a collaboration between the University of Maryland and Rutgers University that carries out nationally recognized fundamental research on surfaces and interfaces of materials with potential impact on the next generation of opto- and nano-electronic devices, and on complex oxides with potential applications in memory, switches and sensors. The MRSEC is driven at Maryland by a close
partnership between the Department of Physics and the
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, with
primary research thrusts in Independent Research
Groups:
IRG 1: Low-Dimensional Interfaces (Leader: Ellen Williams)
The goal of this research program is to understand and exploit the special statistical and low-dimensional characteristics of junctions between ultra-thin films of electro-optic and nano-electronic materials to create novel device properties.IRG 2: Multifunctional Magnetic Oxides (Leader: Dennis Drew)
This IRG uses state of the art growth techniques, a comprehensive range of characterization tools and advanced theoretical analysis to understand the fundamental processes in multiferroic magnetic oxides, and develops and tests device concepts for their exploitation.2005-2007 SEED programs
- Diffusion and Wettability in Porous Nanoparticles (Douglas English,
Sheryl Ehrman, Lyle Isaacs and Michael Zachariah) - Template Synthesis of Nanowire / Nanotube Heterostructures (Sang Bok Lee)
- Spin and spin coherence dynamics of tunable electrochemically synthesized nanostructures (Min Ouyang)
Participating faculty from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering include R. Phaneuf, L. Salamanca-Riba, I. Takeuchi, and L. Martinez-Miranda. The MRSEC also supports a service-learning-based K-12 education outreach effort that includes summer science programs for middle school girls and hands-on math and science student programs. Learn more about MRSEC »
Nanoscale Imaging, Spectroscopy, and Properties Laboratory (NISPLab)
The Nanoscale Imaging, Spectroscopy, and Properties Laboratory (NispLab) in the Kim Building is focused on nanoscale characterization of materials and structures generated in Maryland NanoCenter research laboratories or in the FabLab complex. It features high resolution transmission electron microscopy, secondary electron microscopy, scanning Auger microscopy, and scanning probe techniques for atomic- and nano-scale characterization. It is located in a section of the Kim Building designed for low vibration so that best possible spatial resolution can be achieved from the instruments there. The NispLab is adjacent to and integrated with the Keck Laboratory for Combinatorial Nanosynthesis and Multiscale Characterization.
Learn more about the NISP Lab »
Small Smart Systems Center
The Small Smart Systems Center is
a major new research center in Small Smart Systems
under the State of Maryland Flagship Initiative. Small
smart systems refer to small, highly integrated, hybrid
smart systems that strive for full-scale integration
of physical and information systems. These are highly
distributed, often mobile, physical systems of sensors
and actuators, integrated with advanced computational
and communications capability. Small Smart Systems
Center is a multi-departmental entity within the College
of Engineering. MSE faculty member I. Takeuchi holds an appointment
in the Small Smart Systems Center. Learn more about the Small
Smart Systems Center »
Combinatorial Sciences and Materials Informatics Collaboratory (CoSMIC)
The National Science Foundation's Division
of Materials Research (DMR) has recommended the
establishment of CoSMIC as a new International Materials
Institute (IMI). This is part of a new program of
institutes to advance fundamental materials research
by coordinating international projects involving
condensed matter and materials physics; solid state
and materials chemistry; and the design, synthesis,
characterization, and processing of materials to
meet global and regional needs.
CoSMIC is a partnership between Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), the University of Maryland, and Florida International University (FIU), with its central theme being the development and application of combinatorial experimentation and materials informatics to advance the global practice of materials discovery and materials engineering. MSE faculty I. Takeuchi and G. W. Rubloff lead two of the four thrusts of CoSMIC. Learn more about CoSMIC »
Institute for Research in Electronics and Applied Physics (IREAP)
The Institute for Research in Electronics
and Applied Physics (IREAP) is a permanent
Institute at the University of Maryland, formerly
the Institute for Plasma Research. It is a joint
Institute combining the A. J. Clark School of Engineering
and the College of Computer, Mathematics, and Physical
Sciences. Its research portfolio encompasses plasma
processing of materials and the diagnostic techniques
to infer fundamental mechanisms as well as to advance
industrial applications, along with a variety of
fundamental plasma physics research programs. MSE faculty member G. S. Oehrlein holds a joint appointment
in IREAP. Learn more about IREAP »
Center for Superconductivity Research (CSR)
The Center for Superconductivity Research (CSR)
conducts interdisciplinary research in the fields of
superconductivity, magnetism, ferroelectricity, the
synthesis and characterization of advanced electronic
materials, and the development of scanning probe microscopies.
Experimental and theoretical research programs at CSR
are carried out by approximately 30 scientists of whom
12 are faculty members in Physics, Materials or Chemistry
Department. MSE faculty member I. Takeuchi holds an appointment
in the Center for Superconductivity Research. Learn more about CSR »
Institute
for Systems Research (ISR)
The Institute for Systems Research (ISR) was established as a National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center in 1985 at Maryland and Harvard, and it later received permanent Institute status from the State of Maryland. The Institute for Systems Research develops, applies and teaches advanced methodologies of design and analysis to solve complex, hierarchical, heterogeneous and dynamic problems of engineering technology and systems for industry and government. MSE faculty member G. W. Rubloff served as ISR Director from 1996-2001. He and R. Ramesh maintain appointments in ISR. Learn more about ISR »
Additional Resources
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