2008-2009 Bulletin – PDF - SEAS Bulletin - Columbia University

Alternative courses can be taken as
electives with the approval of the undergraduate
adviser. Of the 24 points of
elective content in the third and fourth
years, at least 12 points of restricted
electives approved by the adviser must
be taken. Of the remaining 12 points of
electives allotted, a sufficient number
must actually be taken so that no fewer
than 64 points of courses are credited
to the third and fourth years. Those
remaining points of electives are intended
primarily as an opportunity to complete
the four-year, 27-point nontechnical
requirement, but any type of course
work can satisfy them.
GRADUATE PROGRAMS IN
MATERIALS SCIENCE AND
ENGINEERING
Master of Science Degree
Candidates for the Master of Science
degree follow a program of study formulated
in consultation with, and approved
by, a faculty adviser. A minimum of 30
points of credit must be taken in graduate
courses within a specific area of study
of primary interest to the candidate. All
degree requirements must be completed
within five years. A candidate is required
to maintain at least a 2.5 grade point
average. Applicants for admission are
required to take the Graduate Record
Examinations. A research report (6 points
of credit, MSAE E6273) is required.
Special reports (3 points of credit) are
acceptable for Columbia Video Network
(CVN) students.
Doctoral Program
At the end of the first year of graduate
study, doctoral candidates are required
to take a comprehensive written qualifying
examination, which is designed to
test the ability of the candidate to apply
course work in problem solving and creative
thinking. The standard is first-year
graduate level. There are two four-hour
examinations over a two-day period.
Candidates in the program must take
an oral examination within one year of
taking the qualifying examination. Within
two years of taking the qualifying examination,
candidates must submit a written
proposal and defend it orally before a
Proposal Defense Committee consisting
of three members of the faculty, including
the adviser. Doctoral candidates must
submit a thesis to be defended before a
Dissertation Defense Committee consisting
of five faculty members, including
two professors from outside the doctoral
program. Requirements for the Eng.Sc.D.
(administered by the School of Engineering
and Applied Science) and the
Ph.D. (administered by the Graduate
School of Arts and Sciences) are listed
elsewhere in this bulletin.
Areas of Research
Materials science and engineering is
concerned with synthesis, processing,
structure, and properties of metals,
ceramics, polymers, and other materials,
with emphasis on understanding and
exploiting relationships among structure,
properties, and applications requirements.
Our graduate research programs
encompass projects in areas as diverse
as polycrystalline silicon, electronic
ceramics grain boundaries and interfaces,
microstructure and stresses in
microelectronics thin films, oxide thin
films for novel sensors and fuel cells,
wide-band-gap semiconductors, plasma
processing of materials and optical diagnostics
of thin-film processing, ceramic
nanocomposites, electro-deposition and
corrosion processes, and magnetic thin
films for giant and colossal magnetoresistance,
chemical synthesis of
nanoscale materials, nanocrystals, and
carbon nanotubes. Application targets
for polycrystalline silicon are thin film
transistors for active matrix displays and
silicon-on-insulator structures for ULSI
devices. Wide-band-gap II–VI semiconductors
are investigated for laser applications.
Novel applications are being
developed for oxide thin films, including
uncooled IR focal plane arrays and integrated
fuel cells for portable equipment.
Long-range applications of high-temperature
superconductors include efficient
power transmission and highly sensitive
magnetic field sensors.
Thin film synthesis and processing in
this program include evaporation, sputtering,
electrodeposition, and plasma
and laser processing. For analyzing
materials structures and properties,
faculty and students employ electron
microscopy, scanning probe microscopy,
cathodoluminescence and electron
beam–induced current imaging, photoluminescence,
dielectric and anelastic
relaxation techniques, ultrasonic methods,
magnetotransport measurements,
and X-ray diffraction techniques. Faculty
members have research collaborations
with Lucent, Exxon, Philips Electronics,
IBM, and other New York area research
and manufacturing centers, as well as
major international research centers.
Scientists and engineers from these
institutions also serve as adjunct faculty
members at Columbia. The National
Synchrotron Light Source at Brookhaven
National Laboratory is used for highresolution
X-ray diffraction and absorption
measurements.
Entering students typically have
undergraduate degrees in materials
science, metallurgy, physics, chemistry,
or other science and engineering disciplines.
First-year graduate courses
provide a common base of knowledge
and technical skills for more advanced
courses and for research. In addition to
course work, students usually begin an
association with a research group, individual
laboratory work, and participation
in graduate seminars during their first year.
GRADUATE SPECIALTY IN
SOLID-STATE SCIENCE AND
ENGINEERING
Solid-state science and engineering is
an interdepartmental graduate specialty
that provides coverage of an important
area of modern technology that no single
department can provide. It encompasses
the study of the full range of properties
of solid materials, with special emphasis
on electrical, magnetic, optical, and
thermal properties. The science of solids
is concerned with understanding these
properties in terms of the atomic and
electronic structure of the materials in
question. Insulators (dielectrics), semiconductors,
ceramics, and metallic
materials are all studied from this viewpoint.
Quantum and statistical mechanics
are key background subjects. The
engineering aspects deal with the design
of materials to achieve desired properties
and the assembling of materials into
systems to produce devices of interest
to modern technology, e.g., for computers
and for energy production and utilization.
167
SEAS 2008–2009