What is Materials Engineering?

The Engineer

10 years ago

Materials engineering or also known as Materials science is an interdisciplinary field that deals with the application of matter’s properties to a number of areas that pertain to science and engineering. This field is comparatively new; however the inventions that are a part of this engineering are quite old and still prove to be useful. Currently, this engineering discipline is focusing on a myriad of new technologies that include nanotechnology and new materials which would allow the scientists to tackle a plethora of issues that they are facing.

Materials Engineering Sub Disciplines

Materials engineering has been divided into a number of sub-disciplines which are as follows;

Biomaterials
Ceramography
Crystallography
Electronic and magnetic materials
Forensic engineering
Forensic materials engineering
Glass science
Materials characterization
Metallography
Metallurgy
Microtechnology
Nanotechnology
Rheology
Surface science/catalysis
Textile reinforced materials
Tribology

Top Materials Engineering Universities

The top three ranked universities when it comes to Materials Engineering are as follows;

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
University of California, Berkley
Stanford University

Materials Engineering Associations

There are a myriad of associations pertaining to Materials engineering but we shall list only three;

ASM
MRS
SAMPE

Being a Materials Engineer

Being a Materials engineer requires you to have a firm grip on properties of different materials and it also requires you to understand physical and chemical composition. As a materials engineer, it is your task to find new materials and to find ways to transform existing materials. Therefore, You will be spending quite some time in the laboratory.