An Emerging Multi-Discipline: Materials Design
Traditionally, design with materials has been a sub-discipline of design engineering which addresses materials selection issues for various applications, quite distinct from materials science. The fields of materials science and materials engineering have been predominately concerned with establishing structure-property relations, processing of materials, and measurement of properties. This traditional empirical approach is increasingly shifting towards design of materials to achieve enhanced (or optimal) functionality, driven largely by advances in theoretical modeling, process modeling and resolution of analytical characterization.
In recent years, the nascent field of Materials Design Science has advanced significantly, focusing on the prediction of specific pre-synthetic material properties, of both structural and functional nature. Theoretical and applied solid state physics is now poised to predict the structure of presently unknown materials possessing desired properties at atomistic/molecular scales.
In recognition of this paradigm shift towards materials design, it is encumbent upon the broad materials community to enunciate a vision inclusive of both the scientific and engineering aspects: Materials Design Science and Engineering (MDS&E) - the invocation of science and engineering principles to tailor material structures to achieve a high degree of functionality in applications. Primary elements of MDS&E include:
- Structure-Property Relations Across Length Scales
- Materials Synthesis and Design
- Elements of Process Design Science and Engineering
- Multidisciplinary Materials Education
You might also be interested in the NSF-sponsored Workshop held in October 1998 on MDS&E in Atlanta that was co-hosted by Georgia Tech (D.L. McDowell) and Morehouse College: