DEPARTMENT OF MATERIALS UNDERGRADUATE BROCHURE
What is Materials Science?
Materials Science is an interdisciplinary subject that makes use of knowledge from Chemistry, Engineering, Physics and, increasingly, Biology and Medicine, but which has its own special character. There are few areas of research and development that combine such a wide knowledge base and put it to such diverse practical and commercial use.
The simplest description of what a Materials degree course covers is "the science of how materials behave at all scales from electrons to supertankers". We are interested in improving the performance of existing materials and in designing and fabricating new, higher performance materials that nature forgot to invent! A material is to us any solid from which we can make something useful; from sand on the beach (computer chips) to nickel (the turbine blades in jet engines) and carbon fibres (in composites that protect the drivers of Formula 1 racing cars).
The subject appeals to students who do not wish to be limited to a single traditional science subject, who enjoy an interdisciplinary approach and who want to apply their science, both experimental and theoretical, to real and important problems in engineering and technology. Materials is an outward-looking subject that can be studied in effective combination with a wide range of subjects. In Oxford, in addition to our Materials Science course we offer a joint course combining Materials Science with Economics and Management. We also encourage and assist our undergraduates to study a second language as part of the course and to undertake a summer vacation placement in industry.
Developments in the physics and chemistry of materials take place alongside those in manufacturing processes and engineering design; all these areas are the domain of the materials scientist. By manipulating and designing materials at the atomic scale, a new branch in the study of materials has opened up, that of nanotechnology. This new science is revealing more secrets about the structure of matter and allowing major advances to be made in areas such as electronics, engineering, computing & medicine.
Modern materials are being developed which may look like their counterparts of 50 or 100 years ago, but are in fact greatly modified – often at the atomic scale – to provide vastly superior properties, such as strength, toughness, wear and corrosion resistance. Equally, completely new materials such as carbon nanotubes are also being developed: materials that have many exciting applications, not least in the development of quantum computers and devices to generate “green” energy.
Is Materials science for you?
If you can identify with some of the following, then the answer could be yes. Do you:
- Enjoy all areas of science?
- Perform competently in maths?
- Gain satisfaction from solving problems?
- Find yourself asking 'why does a material behave the way that it does'?
- Want to apply what you learn to practical problems?
- Have a desire to develop new or improved materials, for example, for engineering, construction, electronic, aerospace or medical applications?
- Like the idea of mixing business with science?
The scope of Materials Science is truly vast, covering almost all areas of science. If you want a fascinating & exciting degree course and career, Materials Science is for you.
