Courses

CSM501

This course is a collaborative learning program focused on the skills that will allow new graduate students to develop to their fullest potential and efficiency at Mines, prepare them for the next steps in their professional or academic journey, and build a network of colleagues across campus. Course objectives: Develop skills for success in independent and collaborative research; understand the expectations for graduate (vs. undergraduate) training; become an integrated member of the Mines community; explore resources and support for academic and professional growth; connect with peers across campus; and develop as a person, a student, and an early-career STEM specialist.

MTGN 219 - The Art and Science of Glassblowing

Explore the science of glass by learning artistic glassblowing. Lectures will cover basic glass network structure, melt processing and viscosity, forming and cold working, as well as optical and mechanical properties. Over the course of the semester, laboratory exercises will train students in basic glassblowing and safe use of a hot glass shop. Students who pass the course with a B or better will be certified to use the Hill Hall hot glass shop during open shop hours.

MTGN 272 - Particulate Materials Processing (a.k.a Field Session)

Summer session. Characterization and production of particles. Physical and interfacial phenomena associated with particulate processes. Applications to metal and ceramic powder processing. Laboratory projects and plant visits

MTGN314 - PROPERTIES AND PROCESSING OF CERAMICS

(I) Application of engineering principles and fundamental structure-processing-property relationship to inorganic non-metallic materials. Emergence of macroscopic characteristics and functional properties from bonding, structure, symmetry, and defects. Applications of basic thermodynamic and kinetic principles to powder-based processing. Corequisites: MTGN314L, MTGN202, and MTGN251 or MTGN351. 2 hours lecture; 2 semester hours.

MTGN 345+L - Sintering of Ceramics

This course covers the fundamentals and applications of sintering based processes in ceramic engineering. It includes solid-state, liquid phase, reactive and vapor phase sintering and covers densifying and non-densifying mechanisms as well as microstructure development for bulk, coatings, and additively manufactured parts. The course covers technologies used in the processing of ceramics. 

MTGN 410 - Thermal Properties of Ceramics

This course covers the fundamentals and applications of ceramic materials/responses to thermal energy. Thermal responses are fundamentally borne from atomic scale processes which will be covered in detail. Particular attention is paid to thermal conduction, melting, thermally induced strain, thermomechanical stresses, and engineering microstructures to obtain specific thermal performances.

MTGN 412 / MLGN 512 - Ceramic Engineering

Application of engineering principles to inorganic, non-metallic materials (i.e., ceramics), with a focus on structure – processing – property relationships. This course assumes a basic understanding of chemistry, modern physics, and thermodynamics, and introduces the student to the breadth of ceramic materials and ceramic-enabled applications.

MTGN 414 / MLGN 544 - Ceramic Processing

Covers the principles of ceramic processing and the relationships between processing and microstructure. Raw materials and raw materials preparation, forming and fabrication, thermal and athermal processing techniques, and finishing of ceramic materials are covered. Principles will be illustrated by case studies on specific ceramic materials. A project to design a ceramic fabrication process is required.

MTGN 466 - Materials Design: Synthesis, Characterization, and Selection

Application of fundamental materials-engineering principles to the design of systems for extraction and synthesis, and to the selection of materials. Systems covered range from those used for metallurgical processing to those used for processing of emergent materials. Microstructural design, characterization and properties evaluation provide the basis for linking synthesis to applications. Selection criteria tied to specific requirements such as corrosion resistance, wear and abrasion resistance, high temperature service, cryogenic service, vacuum systems, automotive systems, electronic and optical systems, high strength/weight ratios, recycling, economics and safety issues. Materials investigated include mature and emergent metallic, ceramic and composite systems used in the manufacturing and fabrication industries. Student-team design activities including oral and written reports.

MTGN 598 - Anisotropic Dielectrics

Many of the interesting and useful properties of materials come about because of low symmetry crystal structures. This course explores property anisotropy (and the associated mathematical framework) of materials up to 4th rank tensors with a focus on insulators (dielectrics) in order to cover a broad range of electrical, optical, magnetic, and mechanical phenomena.

MLGN 598A - Fundamentals of Ferroic Materials

This course is designed to cover fundamentals of ferroic materials (ferroelectric, ferroelastic, and ferromagnetic). The focus is on crystal structure-property relationships, their thermodynamic descriptions, and associated electrical measurements probing the phenomena. After finishing the course, students are expected to be able to express Landau free energy under arbitrary physical boundary conditions and to measure and interpret properties accordingly (e. g, current, capacitance, polarization, magnetization, strain). This understanding is important to develop ferroic materials used for real-world applications such as sensors, actuators, memories, filters and spintronics which are key for IoT/network and other electronic technologies.