Minor in Materials

Material properties, material processing issues, or material costs are the limiting factor in the design or performance of almost all systems around us. Engineers, scientists, and managers in all technological sectors often must make material selection decisions based on a variety of considerations, including properties, performance, environmental impact, and cost. A Minor in Materials, feasible within a 15 unit program of study, will benefit students who wish to enhance their disciplinary major with an additional degree designation in the area of materials.

Requirements for the Materials Minor:

The minor requires the completion of 2 units of work as described below:

1. ES 2001 Introduction to Material Science (1/3 unit)
2. 1-1/3 units of electives, selected from the following list of courses b,c:
   CE 3026 Materials of Construction
   CH 3410 Principles of Inorganic Chemistry
   CH 2310 Organic Chemistry I
   CH 2320 Organic Chemistry II
   CH 2330 Organic Chemistry III
   CH 4330 Organic Synthesis
   CHE 3601 Chemical Materials Engineering
   ECE 4904 Semiconductor Devices
   ME 2820 Materials Processing
   ME 4718 Advanced Materials with Aerospace Applications
   ME 4810 Automotive Materials and Process Design
   ME 4813 Ceramics and Glasses for Engineering Applications
   ME/BME 4814 Biomaterials
   ME 4821 Plastics
   ME 4832 Corrosion and Corrosion Control
   ME 4840 Physical Metallurgy
   ME 4860 Food Engineering
   ME 4875 Introduction to Nanomaterials and Nanotechnology
   PH 2510 Atomic Force Microscopy
   PH 3502 Solid State Physics

Students who are able to design their undergraduate program of study such that they have sufficient preparation may also use the following graduate courses toward a Materials Minor: all MTE graduate courses; CHE 508, Catalysis and Surface Science of Materials; CHE 510, Particulate Systems.

3. Capstone Experience (1/3 unit)

The capstone experience requirement for the Minor in Materials must be satisfied by an upper level course or IS/P activity that integrates and synthesizes material processing, structure, and property relationships as they affect performance.

1. 1. Courses that satisfy the capstone experience requirement currently include ME 4810, ME 4813, ME 4814, and ME 4821. Other courses must be approved in advance by the Program Committee for the Minor in Materials.
   2. Students may satisfy the capstone experience requirement by completing a 1/3 unit IS/P that receives prior approval from the Program Committee for the Minor in Materials. The IS/P may, for example, take the form of a laboratory experience or may augment the MQP or IQP, considering in depth the materials issues associated with the project topic (see Note d). An IS/P related to the MQP must be distinct from the core 1 unit of the MQP and in most cases would be advised by a faculty member other than the MQP advisor.

Notes:

1. In accordance with the Institute-wide policy on Minors, academic activities used in satisfying the regular degree requirements may be double-counted toward meeting all but one unit of the Minor requirements.
2. Physics IS/P courses in Superconductors, Photonics, and Lasers may also be counted toward the Materials Minor. In addition, other new or experimental course offerings in the materials area may be approved by the Materials Minor Program Review Committee.
3. Examples: An ECE major designing an integrated circuit for her MQP might conduct a separate analysis of the materials issues related to heat management in the device as the capstone experience for the Minor in Materials; a ME major specifying a gear in a design MQP might conduct a separate analysis of the material processing, structure, and property issues affecting fatigue life of the gear.
4. In accordance with the Institute-wide policy on Minors, the Major Qualifying Project (MQP) cannot be counted toward activity for a Minor. Therefore, a ME, CHE, or any other major whose MQP is judged to be predominantly in the materials area by the Program Review Committee may not count an extra 1/3 unit augmentation of their MQP as their capstone experience in the Minor.
5. The following faculty serve as the Program Review Committee for the Minor in Materials and will serve as Minor Advisors: Richard Sisson (ME), Chrys Demetry (ME), Tahar El-Korchi (CEE).