Graduate Catalog
2022-2023
 
Policies, Procedures, Academic Programs
Materials Science and Engineering
College of Engineering
Academics; completed March 1940. Cost $157,239; 50,807 sq. ft. The building was dedicated to Roy Jay Holden (1870-1945), who was a professor from 1905 to 1945 and head of the Department of Geology from 1907 to 1945. The head of VPI's geology department for 38 years, noted geologist Holden sited Virginia's first gas well, located water wells when a shortage threatened VPI, and assessed the safety of the Claytor Lake Dam site. But he forged his true legacy in the classroom.
160 Holden Hall, 445 Old Turner Street, Mail Code: 0237 Blacksburg VA 24061
Holden Hall
Degree(s) Offered:
• MS
MS Degree in Materials Science and Engineering
Minimum GPA: 3.0
Offered In:
• MEng
MEng Degree in Materials Science and Engineering
Minimum GPA: 3.0
Offered In:
• PhD
PhD Degree in Materials Science and Engineering
Minimum GPA: 3.0
Offered In:
Email Contact(s):
Web Resource(s):
Phone Number(s):
Application Deadlines:
Fall: Jan 15
Spring: Sep 01
Directions
To get Google Maps directions from:

The Graduate School
to
Holden Hall

Get Directions

Department Head : Suneel Kumar Kodambaka
Graduate Program Director : William Reynolds (Graduate Program Chair)
Emeriti Faculty: Norman Dowling; Robert Hendricks
Professors: Peizhen Lu; Mitsuhiro Murayama; Gary Pickrell; William Reynolds; Dwight Viehland
Associate Professors: Alexander Aning; Levon Asryan; Sean Corcoran
Assistant Professors: Carolina Tallon Galdeano
Associate Professor of Practice: Alan Druschitz; Sean McGinnis
Research Associate Professors: Carlos Suchicital

Materials Science and Engineering Introduction

The Department of Materials Science and Engineering awards the M.S. (thesis required), the M.Eng. (non-thesis), and the Ph.D. in materials science and engineering. Candidates for these degrees must hold, or be pursuing, a degree in any branch of engineering, physics, chemistry, geological science, or mathematics.

Specialization is available in: 1) structure and properties of crystalline and non-crystalline materials, 2) materials synthesis, processing, and fabrication, 3) theoretical understanding and computer modeling of materials structures, properties and processes, 4) phase transformations, 5) thermodynamics and phase equilibria, 6) diffusion and kinetics of solid state reactions, and 7) mechanical, thermal, electrical, optical, and magnetic property characterization of all material types, and 8) microelectronic and optoelectronic materials.
Offered In ()

Degree Requirements

Minimum GPA: 3.0
Institution code: 5859
Testing Requirements:
  • TOEFL
    • iBT
      • 90.0
  • GRE
    • General
      • Verbal : 150.0
      • Quantitative : 155.0
      • Analytical : 4.0
The M.S. degree requires a thesis. Students with an interest in applied research and development should consider this degree option. Like the M.Eng. degree, the M.S requires the completion of 30 credit hours of work. Between 6 and 10 of these credit hours are on thesis research (MSE 5994). Most students spend two academic years completing the M.S. program of study.

Students are encouraged to read our Graduate Student Manual, which can be found on our website, for more detailed information about our degree requirements.
Offered In ()

Degree Requirements

Minimum GPA: 3.0
Institution code: 5859
Testing Requirements:
  • TOEFL
    • iBT
      • 90.0
  • GRE
    • General
      • Verbal : 150.0
      • Quantitative : 155.0
      • Analytical : 4.0
The M.Eng. is a non-thesis degree obtained through course work and a project that focuses on an industrial problem or critical literature review. Students with a baccalaureate degree who desire a professional-oriented master's degree and advanced undergraduate students who wish to supplement their background with additional course work are encouraged to consider the M.Eng. degree. A total of 30 credit hours are required for this degree; between 3 and 6 of these hours are project work (MSE 5904), the remainder are course credits. Students typically complete this degree in 12 to 18 months.

Students are encouraged to read our Graduate Student Manual, which can be found on our website, for more detailed information about our degree requirements.
Offered In ()

Degree Requirements

Minimum GPA: 3.0
Institution code: 5859
Testing Requirements:
  • TOEFL
    • iBT
      • 90.0
  • GRE
    • General
      • Verbal : 150.0
      • Quantitative : 155.0
      • Analytical : 4.0
The Ph.D. degree is intended for exceptional students who have a strong interest in scholarship and a desire to do independent research. This degree program is designed to be flexible to meet the broad interests of students and faculty. General requirements for the degree are those of the College of Engineering. A master's degree is neither a prerequisite nor a requirement. However, many Ph.D. students complete the requirements for a master's degree while working toward the Ph.D. degree. The Ph.D. requires the completion of 90 credit hours of work.

Students are encouraged to read our Graduate Student Manual, which can be found on our website, for more detailed information about our degree requirements.

Materials Science and Engineering Facilities

Specialized laboratories permit research in the following areas: thermodynamics and phase equilibria; materials corrosion and stability; x-ray diffraction and crystal structure determination; phase transformations, precipitation hardening and diffusion in materials systems; electron (STEM, SEM, ESEM) and optical microscopy; mathematical modeling and computer simulation of structure, defects and processes; surface characterization of materials by ESCA; materials synthesis, processing and fabrication; characterization of residual stresses in materials, fabrication of thin film electronic and optical materials, mechanical alloying of metals; composite material fabrication and characterization; and electrical, optical, thermal, and mechanical property characterization of ceramics, metals, polymers and glasses including composites, thin films, dielectrics and semiconductors. A class 10,000 cleanroom is available for the preparation of microelectronic materials.

Additional instructional and research facilities available to MSE personnel include the Kroehling Advanced Materials Foundry located at the Research Compound on Plantation Road and the ICTAS (www.ictas.vt.edu) Nanoscale Fabrication and Characterization Laboratory (www.ncfl.ictas.vt.edu) located at the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center. The foundry is a state-of-the-art teaching facility with broad capabilities to handle both ferrous and non-ferrous alloys. The NCFL has over $12 million in state-of-the art tools including suites devoted to electron and force microscopy, spectroscopy, and other advanced processing and analysis techniques.

The Kroehling Foundry is supervised by the VT-FIRE (Foundry Institute for Research and Education) Director, Prof. Alan Druschitz while the NCFL is managed by Prof. William Reynolds.

Major research facilities include optical and transmission electron microscopy; an environmental scanning electron microscope; x-ray diffraction equipment including facilities for the measurement of residual stresses in materials; a secondary ion mass spectrometer, a photoelectron emission spectrometer, surface analysis instruments; mechanical testing frames; instruments for measuring the thermal response of materials including thermal expansion, thermal diffusivity, and differential thermal analysis; sputtering, thin film and vacuum deposition equipment; heat treatment and sintering furnaces; a metal melt spinner; mechanical alloying ball mills; dry and hot isostatic presses; electrical and dielectric characterization instruments; polymer processing and characterization equipment; and computer modeling and simulation facilities including access to multimedia and computer visualization facilities.
Add this course listing feed to your website.
XML Feed Widget

Course Listing for Materials Science and Engineering

 
Loading...