CMU Researchers Unveil Role of Defects on Material Properties
August 9, 2010
Contact: Chriss Swaney
Carnegie Mellon University
412.268.5776
Defects are ubiquitous in materials. They may be unavoidable during material synthesis, and in many cases are deliberately introduced into materials to modify their properties because of their influence in fields as diverse as protein crystallization and architecture. "We created a defective crystal using squishy polymer particles. The polymer particles are micron-sized—so you can think of them as large atoms. However, unlike atoms, you can see the polymer particles using a simple optical microscope. Since atoms move differently around defects, we look at the motion of particles to determine how defects change material properties," said Islam, an assistant professor of chemical engineering and materials science and engineering.
Islam's CMU coauthors include: Deniz Kaya, a post doctoral student in materials science and engineering; Nicole Green, a graduate student in chemical engineering; and Craig Maloney, an assistant professor in civil and environmental engineering.