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     MSE 500 Modern Concepts in Materials Science
 

MSE 500 covers the fundamental principles that govern the physical properties of materials. This course is designed to prepare students without an undergraduate materials degree for further graduate level materials courses. MSE 500 will cover selected topics from senior-level courses in the undergraduate materials science and engineering curriculum. An emphasis will be placed on developing and applying an understanding of basic materials science concepts: atomic bonding; crystallography; defects and diffusion; thermodynamics, phase diagrams and phase transformations; deformation and failure mechanisms in crystalline and noncrystalline solids. This class covers ceramics, metals, polymers and composite materials. 3 credit hours

  
     

Prerequisite
  

BS degree in engineering or related field with undergraduate background in chemistry, physics, math, thermodynamics and mechanics of solids.

 
Course Objectives  

After completing this course, the student will be able to:

  • Explain relationships between atomic bonding and atomic structure of materials
  • Discuss defects and their roles of in the deformation and failure of crystalline solids
  • Apply thermodynamics and phase diagrams to explain the evolution of microstructure
  • Discuss diffusional and nondiffusional phase transformation mechanisms in solids
  • Describe microstructure-property-processing relationships for various material types

 
Course Requirements  

Homework Assignments: Selected problems from the textbook plus additional assigned problems

Exams: 3 semester exams plus a comprehensive final exam

IMPORTANT NOTE: The course offered this summer was recorded during the 15-week semester at NC State University. The summer session, however, is 10 weeks in duration. Therefore, students will need to cover the course material at a considerably faster pace than during the regular semester. All course requirements must be completed during the 10-week summer session. This should be a consideration before registering for the course.

 
Textbook  

Materials Science and Engineering – An Introduction, 7th Edition, William D. Callister Jr., John Wiley & Sons. ISBN: 0471736961. This textbook will be heavily supplemented with lecture materials from other texts.

 
Computer and Internet Requirements  

NCSU has recommended minimum specifications for computers that are generally used for courses. Those specifications can be found here: http://www.ncsu.edu/it/compspecs/

Engineering Online recommends that your computer meets or exceeds the following minimum specifications below. A computer with greater capability (processor speed, RAM, internet bandwidth, disk capacity) will be more likely to properly display the video content of Engineering Online courses.

Windows:

  • Microsoft Windows XP, Windows 2003, or Windows Vista
  • Intel-compatible 1 GHz processor
  • 512 MB RAM
  • 60 GB hard drive with 1 GB free space available
  • Video display at 1024 x 768 or greater
  • Sound output and speakers
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 SP1 or later, Firefox 2.0 or later, or Google Chrome 1.0
  • Windows Media Player 9.0 or later
  • Real One Player Basic (required for certain courses)
  • Adobe Acrobat Reader
  • Broadband Internet connection (256 Kbps or more)

Mac OS X:

  • Mac OS X 10.4.8 or later
  • G4 processor
  • 512 MB RAM
  • 60 GB hard drive with 1 GB free space available
  • Video display at 1024 x 768 or greater
  • Sound output and speakers
  • Safari 2.0.4 (or later) or Firefox 2.0 (or later)
  • Silverlight  (viewers may be prompted to install this when first viewing a presentation)
  • Real One Player Basic (required for certain courses)
  • Adobe Acrobat Reader
  • Broadband Internet connection (256 Kbps or more)
  • NOTE:  The Flip4Mac plug-in causes problems when viewing Mediasite presentations and should be disabled.

Linux:

  • Playback of Mediasite presentations on Linux is accomplished via the Moonlight Project, an open source implementation of Microsoft Silverlight. For more installation on the installation and configuration of Moonlight, please visit http://www.go-mono.com/moonlight/. The compatible operating systems and browsers are listed on this page.
  • Microsoft Media Pack for Moonlight
  • Adobe Reader for Unix
  • Broadband Internet connection (256 Kbps or more)

 
Instructor  

Dr. Michael Rigsbee, Professor and Department Head
Department of Materials Science and Engineering
3010 Engineering Building I (EB I)
North Carolina State University
Campus Box 7907
Raleigh , NC 27695-7907

Phone: (919) 515-3568
Fax: (919) 515-7724
Email: mike_rigsbee@ncsu.edu