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Materials Science
Materials science
Materials science includes those parts of
chemistry,
physics,
geology, and
even biology
that deal with the physical properties of materials. It is usually considered an
applied science, in which the properties under study have some industrial
purpose.
Materials science encompasses all classes of materials, the
study of each of which may be considered a separate field: metals and
metallurgy,
ceramics,
semiconductors and other electronic materials,
polymers,
and
Biomaterials. Metallurgy and ceramics have long and separate histories as
engineering disciplines, but because the science that underlies these
disciplines applies to all classes of materials, materials science is recognized
as a distinct discipline.
Materials science is related to
materials engineering, which tends to focus on processing techniques
(casting, rolling, welding,
ion implantation,
crystal growth,
thin-film deposition,
sintering,
glassblowing,
etc.), analytical techniques (electron
microscopy,
x-ray diffraction,
calorimetry,
nuclear microscopy (HEFIB) etc.), materials design, and cost/benefit
tradeoffs in industrial production of materials.
Thermodynamics, for phase stability, phase transformations and phase
diagrams.
Kinetics,
applied to the rates of phase transformations and
diffusion.
Crystallography and the use of diffraction techniques for phase
identification.
Solid state chemistry, for understanding the synthesis, stucture and phase
relationships of solids
Solid-state mechanics, for understanding plastic deformation
of solids and fracturing.
Solid-state physics, for understanding electrical properties of materials.
Defects in crystals, such as grain boundaries and dislocations, and their
effects on physical properties.
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