Materials Chemistry

The Materials Chemistry track research is highly interdisciplinary. This track is at the interface of designing and preparing advanced materials, and characterizing their unique physical and chemical properties. The students will develop knowledge of physical principles of materials, skills in modern synthetic technologies, proficiency with state-of-the-art characterization tools, and a broad background in applications of semiconductor, photonic, energy, and biomedical devices. Current research areas include (1) Inorganic, organic, polymer, and hybrid materials for novel electronic, magnetic, mechanical, chemical, and biological properties; (2) Cutting-edge techniques to characterize materials in energy, time, and spatial dimensions, from macroscopic ensembles to the single-atom level; (3) Design and fabrication of devices from the molecular level; (4) First-principles calculation and prediction of material properties; (5) Soft materials from biological molecules. Faculty and students in the Materials Chemistry Track may also benefit from association with the UC San Diego Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC), a National Science Foundation funded center for interdisciplinary research in materials science and engineering. Many research programs within the Materials Chemistry track are synergistic with Inorganic, Organic, and Physical Chemistry tracks.