Where: CHTM, Room 101

When: Tuesday, December 5, 2017   10:00 AM - 11:00 AM 

Abstract: Societies face many challenges in the 21st century that require science and engineering based material solutions. We as educators need to ensure that our STEM students receive the necessary professional preparation to successfully participate in this process. I will discuss briefly how science and engineering based prototype design and 3D printing provides a pathway to satisfy changing workforce requirements. It is clear that 3D printed materials are directly connected to constitutive laws caused by bond formation and electronic interactions at the atomic scale. I will show how first-principle simulations of the many-electron Schrödinger equation can guide materials functionalization and performance control. As an example I consider Group IA functionalization of the carbon backbone in PLA, a common 3D printing filament, in order to control its optical and electronic properties. As a second example I consider defect engineering/functionalization of 2D materials for reversible hydrogen storage. In the last part of my presentation I will discuss programmatic advances for connecting theory and experiment through vibrational spectroscopy. These examples show that quantitative materials science provides a key to direct research and development that will shape our future.