The science and engineering of materials spans a wide spectrum of activity
from enquiry on to the arrangement of, and forces between, the atomic and
molecular building blocks of matter to the design, fabrication and testing
of materials and devices for practical application. Materials research
at the ANU, loosely coordinated by the Centre for the Science and Engineering
of Materials, is being pursued in the Faculty of Science and Faculty of
Engineering and Information Technology, and in several of the Research
Schools of the Institute of Advanced Studies. Examples of the materials
being studied include multi-layer doped semiconductors and optoelectronic
materials with applications in telecommunications, thin film for solar
energy conversion, surfactants and adhesives, new high-pressure minerals,
mineral derivatives of high internal surface areas for water purification,
fibre- reinforced polymers including naturally occurring biomaterials and
advanced graphite fibre composites, and materials specially tailored for
targetted and/or slow-release drug delivery.
The current route for undergraduates wishing to pursue later research in materials science is through existing units from both the Faculty of Science and the Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology. Within the Faculty of Science, the departments of Chemistry, Forestry, Geology, Mathematics and Physics and Theoretical Physics in particular, all present courses which are relevant to the study of materials.
A wide range of Honours projects in the science and engineering of materials is available through supervision by staff from the Faculties and from the Research Schools of Chemistry, Biological Sciences, Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Engineering, and the John Curtin School of Medical Research.
The recommended route for undergraduate students, wanting to carry out an Honours project (or pursue research for a higher degree) in materials science and engineering, is through existing courses from both the Faculty of Science and the Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology. Take the listed units which suit your interests, enrol in the appropriate Department for honours, and then select a project of your choice.
Group A
ENGN2215 Introduction to Materials Science
GEOL1002 Earth Science
Group B
BIOL2061 Introductory Molecular Biology
CHEM2053 Inorganic and Materials Chemistry
ENGN2211 Electrical
Circuits and Devices
ENGN2214 Mechanics of Materials
ENGN2224 Electronics
GEOL2004 Petrology
GEOL2009 Mineralogy
and Geochemistry
PHYS2013 Quantum Mechanics
PHYS2019 Quantum Systems
Group C
BIOL3079 Genes and Proteins
BIOL3080 Molecular and Cellular Physiology
CHEM3052 Applied
Physical Chemistry
CHEM3053 Advanced Inorganic Chemistry
ENGN3002 Semiconductor
Devices
FSTY3016 Forest Products
FSTY3054 Special Topics (Forest Products)
GEOL3002 Structure
and Tectonics
GEOL3010 Petrology and Geochemistry
PHYS3028 Membrane Biophysics
PHYS3032 Solid
State and Statistical Physics
PHYS3034 Laser Physics and Compressible Flows
and Shock Wave Physics
ENGN4501 Engineering Materials
ENGN4507 Semiconductor
Technology
ENGN4511 Composite Materials
ENGN4517 Characterisation of Materials
Group E
ENGN4519 Advanced Microelectronics