Materials science engineers apply knowledge from physics, chemistry, and crystallography to practical applications such as construction and the creation of new materials. They work on interdisciplinary projects in fields such as medicine, space, and microprocessor engineering, and are increasingly involved in nanotechnology research and development.
The main role of a materials science engineer is to take the knowledge gained in areas such as physics, chemistry and crystallography and apply this knowledge to practical applications such as the construction of machines, buildings or new forms of matter. The field of materials science engineering is a broad, interdisciplinary field that serves many functions in the modern industrialized world. Materials scientists themselves can only focus on the theoretical nature of the properties of matter. It is your role to discover these properties and how their physical interactions change depending on local conditions. Engineers, however, focus on what can be done with the knowledge of the body of materials that has been established by science.
A materials science engineer works on projects that involve many of the physical sciences as well as some of the life sciences. Your education, therefore, must include a wide range of subjects. It is not uncommon to find researchers in the field who have multiple degrees, usually in physics or chemistry and some form of engineering, with backgrounds in genetics or microbiology. The main industries that will continue to have a strong demand for a materials science engineer are medicine; space, military and energy applications; and microprocessor engineering. This could mean that a materials science engineer would work in fields as diverse as oil exploration, cancer treatment, bridge construction or aircraft design, to name a few.
There are a wide range of opportunities open to a materials science engineer. Traditionally, the field has focused on the application of materials knowledge, from the study of metallurgy, ceramics, and polymers to traditional construction methods. Materials research is being coupled with engineering advances in unprecedented ways. A materials science engineer might work with a pharmacology company to develop targeted drug delivery devices for tumor cells, with a military organization to develop self-healing body armor, or with a clothing manufacturer to develop stain-impermeable material. All of these applications were made possible by materials science engineers, and it is likely that many more will be developed.
One of the hottest fields for a materials science engineer is in nanotechnology research and development. Nanotechnology is also an interdisciplinary field, concerned with engineering materials and machines at a scale – in at least one dimension, such as width or length – of 100 nanometers or less. A nanometer is one billionth of a meter. To illustrate the size involved in nanotechnology, an average human red blood cell is typically about 100 nanometers in diameter.
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