Material Science

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The study of materials and their properties, as well as the selection and processing of materials for use in aerospace systems.

Atomic structure: Study of the structure and properties of atoms and the interactions between atoms.
Crystallography: Study of the crystal structure of materials and how they relate to their physical properties.
Solid state physics: Study of the behavior of matter in its solid state, including the electrical, magnetic, and optical properties of materials.
Thermodynamics: Study of the relationships between heat, work, and energy, including the study of phase transitions and the behavior of materials under different conditions.
Kinetics: Study of the rate of chemical reactions in a material.
Mechanical properties: Study of the behavior of materials under external forces, including elasticity, plasticity, and fracture.
Materials characterization techniques: Various techniques used to study the microstructure and properties of materials, including microscopy, spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction.
Composite materials: Study of materials composed of two or more different kinds of materials, which often exhibit unique properties compared to their constituent parts.
Nanomaterials: Study of materials with dimensions on the nanoscale, which often exhibit unique properties compared to their bulk counterparts.
Materials selection: The process of choosing materials for specific applications based on their properties and characteristics.
Metallurgy: The study of metals, their properties, and their applications in engineering.
Ceramics: The science of inorganic, non-metallic materials and their behavior under different conditions, including their applications in aerospace engineering.
Polymers: The study of organic materials and their properties, as well as their uses in aerospace engineering.
Composites: A combination of two or more types of materials that are engineered to perform better than their individual components, including their use in aerospace engineering.
Nanotechnology: The study of materials at the nanoscale level, typically less than 100 nanometers in size, and their applications in aerospace engineering.
Electronic Materials: The study of materials used in electronic devices, including metals, ceramics, and polymers, and their use in aerospace engineering.
Biomaterials: The study of materials used in applications related to biology and medicine, including their use in aerospace engineering.
Multifunctional Materials: Materials that have more than one function, such as sensing or actuation, in addition to their primary application in aerospace engineering.
Surface Science: The study of the surface properties of materials and their impact on performance in aerospace engineering.
Material Design and Selection: The process of selecting and designing materials to meet specific performance requirements in aerospace engineering applications.
"Materials science is an interdisciplinary field of researching and discovering materials. Materials engineering is an engineering field of finding uses for materials in other fields and industries."
"The intellectual origins of materials science stem from the Age of Enlightenment, when researchers began to use analytical thinking from chemistry, physics, and engineering to understand ancient, phenomenological observations in metallurgy and mineralogy."
"As such, the field was long considered by academic institutions as a sub-field of these related fields."
"Beginning in the 1940s, materials science began to be more widely recognized as a specific and distinct field of science and engineering."
"The understanding of processing-structure-properties relationships is called the materials paradigm."
"This paradigm is used to advance understanding in a variety of research areas, including nanotechnology, biomaterials, and metallurgy."
"Materials science is also an important part of forensic engineering and failure analysis – investigating materials, products, structures, or components, which fail or do not function as intended, causing personal injury or damage to property."
"Such investigations are key to understanding, for example, the causes of various aviation accidents and incidents."
"Materials scientists emphasize understanding how the history of a material (processing) influences its structure, and thus the material's properties and performance."
"Materials science still incorporates elements of physics, chemistry, and engineering."
"Materials engineering is an engineering field of finding uses for materials in other fields and industries."
"Major technical universities around the world created dedicated schools for its study."
"The understanding of processing-structure-properties relationships is called the materials paradigm."
"...research areas, including nanotechnology, biomaterials, and metallurgy."
"...understand ancient, phenomenological observations in metallurgy and mineralogy."
"...investigating materials, products, structures, or components, which fail or do not function as intended, causing personal injury or damage to property."
"...investigating materials, products, structures, or components, which fail or do not function as intended..."
"Beginning in the 1940s, materials science began to be more widely recognized as a specific and distinct field of science and engineering."
"When researchers began to use analytical thinking from chemistry, physics, and engineering to understand ancient, phenomenological observations in metallurgy and mineralogy."
"...incorporates elements of physics, chemistry, and engineering."