Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering
The program is offered in two options, the Materials Science option and the Materials Engineering option. These options are administered by the JHCSLA (Jordan Hu College of Science and Liberal Arts) and NCE (Newark College of Engineering) colleges, respectively. A joint committee involving JHCSLA and NCE faculty will be in charge of overseeing this program.
Materials Science Option
Administered by Department of Physics, JHCSLA
Degree Requirements
Students with an appropriate master's degree in materials science or related field, physics, chemistry or engineering, are required to complete a course work of 12 credits in 700 level courses beyond the master's degree. Students must also complete sufficient credits of dissertation research (MTSE 790) and meet the milestone deadlines, as specified by the Office of Graduate Studies. Specific course selection, the track and dissertation topics are approved by the program advisor on an individual basis.
Students entering with bachelor's degrees are required to complete a course work of 36 credits. Students must also complete sufficient credits of dissertation research (MTSE 790) and meet the milestone deadlines, as specified by the Office of Graduate Studies. For the course work, the required courses for the M.S. in Materials Science are mandatory; no less than 12 credits must be at the 700 level and none at the 500 level. Specific course selection, the track, and dissertation topics are approved by the program advisor on an individual basis.
Seminar
All students must enroll each semester in MTSE 791 Graduate Seminar (0 credit), unless the requirement is waived by the Director for Materials Science Option of Materials Science and Engineering program.
Tracks
The range of possible tracks and courses is broad and is not limited to the tracks and courses listed here. Students should consult the graduate advisor in designing the track and course requirements of the track.
Cross-listed courses
Any cross-listed courses will not be offered simultaneously, but only one of the two will be offered at a time.
Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering – Materials Science option (entering with master's degree)
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| 700-level courses in a chosen track | 12 | |
| Graduate Seminar | ||
| Total Credits | 12 | |
Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering – Materials Science option (entering with bachelor's degree)
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses (2 common and 2 selective courses) | ||
| MTSE 601 | Fundamentals of Engineering Materials | 3 |
| or MTEN 610 | Found of Materials Sci & Engr | |
| MTSE 602 | Thermodynamics of Materials | 3 |
| or MTEN 612 | Thermodynamics of Materials | |
| Select two of the following four courses | 9 | |
| Intro to Phys Prin of Material | ||
| Mathematical and Statistical Methods in Materials Science | ||
| Science and Technology of Thin Films | ||
| Nanomaterials | ||
or MTEN 712 | Nanomaterials | |
| Remaining courses | ||
| 600- or 700-level courses in a chosen track | ||
| 700-level courses in a chosen track | ||
| MTSE 791 | Graduate Seminar | 0 |
| Total Credits of Course Work | 36 | |
* No less than 12 credits must be at the 700 level, including credits from the required courses.
Tracks
Electronic and Photonic Materials Tracks
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MTSE 603 | Intro to Phys Prin of Material | 3 |
| MTSE 688 | Mathematical and Statistical Methods in Materials Science | 3 |
| MTSE 765 | Science and Technology of Thin Films | 3 |
| CHEM 748 | Nanomaterials | 3 |
| or MTEN 712 | Nanomaterials | |
| MTSE 610 | Mechanical Properties of Materials | 3 |
| MTSE 655 | Diffusion and Solid State Kinetics | 3 |
| or MTEN 611 | Diffusion & Solid State Kineti | |
| MTSE 681 | Composite Materials | 3 |
| MTSE 719 | Physical Principles of Characterization of Solids | 3 |
| MTSE 719 | Physical Principles of Characterization of Solids | 3 |
| MTSE 724 | Transport of Electrons and Phonons in Solids | 3 |
| PHYS 661 | Solid-State Physics | 3 |
| PHYS 682 | Introduction To Mems | 3 |
| PHYS 687 | Physics of Materials | 3 |
| PHYS 789 | Physics of Advanced Semiconductor Device Processing | 3 |
| PHYS 611 | Adv Classical Mechanics | 3 |
| PHYS 621 | Classical Electrodynamic | 3 |
| PHYS 641 | Statistical Mechanics | 3 |
| R755 631 | ||
| PHYS 731 | Quantum Mechanics II | 3 |
| CHEM 610 | Advanced Inorganic Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 658 | Advanced Physical Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 737 | Applications of Computational Chemistry and Molecular Modeling | 3 |
| CHEM 764 | Advanced Analytical Chemistry | 3 |
| CHE 702 | Selected Topics in Chemical Engineering II | 3 |
| ECE 625 | Fiber and Integrated Optics | 3 |
| ECE 626 | Optoelectronics - Nonlinear Modulators for Optical Communication | 3 |
| ECE 657 | Semiconductor Devices | 3 |
| ECE 658 | VLSI Design I | 3 |
| ECE 659 | Fabrication Principles of Electronic and Optoelectronic Devices | 3 |
| ECE 739 | Laser Systems | 3 |
Particulate and Nano Materials Track
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MTSE 603 | Intro to Phys Prin of Material | 3 |
| MTSE 688 | Mathematical and Statistical Methods in Materials Science | 3 |
| MTSE 765 | Science and Technology of Thin Films | 3 |
| CHEM 748 | Nanomaterials | 3 |
| or MTEN 712 | Nanomaterials | |
| MTSE 610 | Mechanical Properties of Materials | 3 |
| MTSE 655 | Diffusion and Solid State Kinetics | 3 |
| or MTEN 611 | Diffusion & Solid State Kineti | |
| MTSE 681 | Composite Materials | 3 |
| MTSE 719 | Physical Principles of Characterization of Solids | 3 |
| CHEM 605 | Advanced Organic Chemistry I: Structure | 3 |
| CHEM 610 | Advanced Inorganic Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 658 | Advanced Physical Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 673 | Biochemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 737 | Applications of Computational Chemistry and Molecular Modeling | 3 |
| CHEM 764 | Advanced Analytical Chemistry | 3 |
| BME 669 | Engineering Physiology | 3 |
| BME 672 | Biomaterials | 3 |
| PHYS 661 | Solid-State Physics | 3 |
| PHYS 682 | Introduction To Mems | 3 |
| PHYS 687 | Physics of Materials | 3 |
| PHYS 611 | Adv Classical Mechanics | 3 |
| PHYS 621 | Classical Electrodynamic | 3 |
| PHYS 641 | Statistical Mechanics | 3 |
| R755 631 | ||
| PHYS 731 | Quantum Mechanics II | 3 |
| ME 676 | Applied Plasticity | 3 |
| ME 678 | Engineering Design of Plastic Products | 3 |
Mathematical and Computational Materials Science Track
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MTSE 603 | Intro to Phys Prin of Material | 3 |
| MTSE 688 | Mathematical and Statistical Methods in Materials Science | 3 |
| MATH 611 | Numerical Methods for Computation | 3 |
| MATH 613 | Advanced Applied Mathematics I: Modeling | 3 |
| MATH 666 | Simulation for Stochastic Systems | 3 |
| MATH 671 | Asymptotic Methods I | 3 |
| MATH 675 | Partial Differential Equations | 3 |
| MATH 677 | Calculus of Variations | 3 |
| MATH 689 | Advanced Applied Mathematics II: Ordinary Differential Equations | 3 |
| MATH 690 | Advanced Applied Mathematics III: Partial Differential Equations | 3 |
| MATH 712 | Numerical Methods II | 3 |
| MATH 713 | Advanced Scientific Computing: Multi-Dimensional Finite-Difference Schemes and Spectral Methods | 3 |
| MATH 722 | Wave Propagation | 3 |
| MATH 767 | Fast Numerical Algorithms | 3 |
| PHYS 661 | Solid-State Physics | 3 |
| PHYS 611 | Adv Classical Mechanics | 3 |
| PHYS 621 | Classical Electrodynamic | 3 |
| PHYS 641 | Statistical Mechanics | 3 |
| R755 631 | ||
| PHYS 731 | Quantum Mechanics II | 3 |
| CHEM 737 | Applications of Computational Chemistry and Molecular Modeling | 3 |
| MTSE 765 | Science and Technology of Thin Films | 3 |
| CHEM 748 | Nanomaterials | 3 |
| or MTEN 712 | Nanomaterials | |
Qualifying Examination
The student must pass a written and an oral qualifying examination. The written qualifying exam given every summer is administered to test general academic preparation and competence in the research of Materials Science. Within one year after passing the written qualifying exam, the student is required to pass the oral qualifying exam to achieve Ph.D. candidacy, in which the potential Ph.D. candidate presents a preliminary research proposal for approval by the dissertation committee. The student will be allowed two attempts to pass the written or oral qualifying exam.
Students take written qualifying exams on the following common required courses.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MTSE 601 | Fundamentals of Engineering Materials | 3 |
| or MTEN 610 | Found of Materials Sci & Engr | |
| MTSE 602 | Thermodynamics of Materials | 3 |
| or MTEN 612 | Thermodynamics of Materials | |
Formation of Dissertation Committee
Within one year of passing the written qualifying examination, doctoral students must form a five-member dissertation committee that meets the approval of the graduate program director for Materials Science Option of Materials Science and Engineering. The committee must include the dissertation advisor, three additional faculty members from the program, and at least one member from outside the program or NJIT.
An oral presentation and public defense of the doctoral dissertation is required.
