Research

Meeting the Challenge

MSE Researchers Are Shaping What Nature Cannot Provide

University of Arizona MSE researchers have achieved international recognition for their advancements in optical materials, biomaterials, tissue engineering, nanotechnology and computational modeling of materials.

They are employing sound waves for quantum computing, experimenting with organic polymers to improve bioelectronics, and developing high-temperature ceramics for aerospace vehicles.

UA MSE products are moving out of the lab and into the world. MSE-produced materials and findings are used at the Rijksmuseum in the Netherlands to preserve cultural artifacts and on the International Space Station to protect equipment from its extreme environment. Further, researchers are commercializing inventions such as a concrete substitute made from mine tailings and a non-absorbent sunscreen.

Focus Areas

MSE faculty conduct research in the following primary areas:

Additive manufacturing
Heritage conservation
Integrated computational science and engineering
Materials for energy conversion and heat control
Materials synthesis, processing and fabrication
Optical materials

Project Highlight

Award-Winning and Paradigm-Changing Work

Assistant Professor Brian Kim won the Association of Korean Physicists in America's Outstanding Young Researcher Award for his work in condensed matter physics and nanotechnology. Kim works with complex heterostructures to control and manipulate 2D and quantum materials at the atomic scale.

"It's fascinating that we can control these materials at an atomic level to create the properties that we want on demand. The potential impact of my research is huge."

Research Centers and Facilities

MSE has a broad reach on campus, in the community and throughout the world. Faculty and students collaborate in UA labs and research centers, including the following:

Center and lab capabilities are extensive: