Research Activities

The research activities of the faculty cover most of the important and advanced topics in materials science and engineering, with an emphasis on structure, properties, and processing of materials. The materials systems which are studied include: metals and alloys, ceramic materials, polymers, composites, electronic materials, thin films, nanomaterials, biomaterials, and amorphous materials.

Research topics include:

  • Phase transformations and microstructure evolution
  • Mechanical properties of materials, and the development of materials with improved mechanical properties
  • The study of electrical properties of semiconductors and thin films
  • The study of dielectric and optical properties of materials
  • The development of metallurgical processes (casting, wetting, joining, superplasticity, advanced powder metallurgy, heat treatments, laser surface treatments, and coatings)
  • The influence of the environment on materials, including corrosion, oxidation, and protection systems against corrosion
  • Processing and properties of polymers
  • Processing and synthesis of metals, intermetallics, and ceramic matrix composites
  • Biomaterials: processing, properties, and biocompatibility
  • Advanced characterization of materials

Each of the research topics is at the forefront of science and materials engineering, and the research is conducted in collaboration with industry, and with other scientists in Israel and abroad.

The research in the Faculty of Materials Engineering is conducted by 16 senior faculty members, six professor emeriti, 18 research associates, five to ten post-doctoral research associates, and approximately 60 graduate students.
Most of the research activities at the Faculty of Materials Engineering are conducted within the framework of the Materials Research Centre. In addition, some research projects are conducted within the framework of the George Sachs Minerva Centre for Materials Processing and Characterization and The Louis Edelstein Centre for Quasicrystals. Recently, the Wolfson Centre for Interface Science was founded adjacent to the faculty.

Central Research Facilities
Due to the special character of the research in the faculty, several central laboratories of the Materials Engineering Research Centre are used in a large proportion of the research activities. These central laboratories include:

Electron Microscopy Laboratory
The Electron Microscopy Center provides for microstructural and microchemical characterization of materials, and serves scientists at the Technion, Israeli research institutes and Israeli industry. In addition to providing microscopy facilities for research and development, undergraduate and graduate students alike learn to operate and utilize the various equipment for materials characterization.
Undergraduate students use the center within the framework of the Advanced Student Laboratory under the guidance of experienced operators. Graduate students undergo training for independent operation of all the equipment, for use in their research projects.
The Electron Microscopy Center has five areas of focus which include:

Transmission electron microscopy includes two instruments. The first is a FEI Titan 80-300 KeV S/TEM which was purchased as part of the Russell Berrie Nanotechnology Institute. The Titan is equipped with a monochromator for sub-eV energy resolution (80-300kV), an aberration corrector for the objective system, a high resolution energy filter, for sub-eV EELS and energy filtered TEM, a high resolution STEM system, including HAADF, an EDS system for local chemical analysis and a 2Kx2K slow scan CCD. The second TEM is a FEI Tecnai G2 T20 200KeV S-Twin TEM/STEM with a LaB6 electron source. This microscope is also equipped with BF and DF STEM detectors, an EDS system, a plate camera, and a 1Kx1K slow scan CCD.

Scanning electron microscopy is conducted on a FEI E-SEM Quanta 200 combined with EDS and WDS detectors, and on a Leo Gemini 982 high resolution SEM (HRSEM). The latter instrument is located at the Wolfson Centre for Interface Science.

Optical microscopy includes two excellent metallographic light microscopes, each connected to a CCD camera and a computer for automated image analysis. Specimen preparation, an extremely important part of any microscopy laboratory, includes diamond saws, diamond polishing systems, dimple grinders, ultrasonic cutters, electro-chemical thinning systems, gold and carbon coaters, two ion millers, a precision ion polishing system, a plasma cleaner and a cryogenic ultramicrotome.

X-Ray Diffraction Laboratory
X-ray diffraction is one of the main methods for structural analysis and for the study of structural quality, due to the high precision in the measurement of lattice parameters. The X-Ray Diffraction Laboratory is equipped with modern equipment which allows for advanced X-ray diffraction characterization.
An X'Pert Philips system is used for phase analysis, for the investigation of preferred orientation, and residual stress analysis of powders, polycrystalline materials and polycrystalline thin films. Another system, a high resolution double-crystal diffractometer, is used for special applications related to very small strains in semiconductor crystals and ultrasound-induced effects in X-ray diffraction.
Single crystalline structures for microelectronic and optoelectronic applications, such as nearly perfect thin films, heterostructures, superlattices and multilayers are studied with a high resolution X-ray diffraction system at the Wolfson Centre for Interface Science. This system combines an 18 kW Rigaku rotating anode generator and a Bede D3 high-precision multipurpose goniometer, and is used for the precise measurement of depth-resolved profiles of lattice parameters. Another available mode of operation is glancing angle X-ray reflectivity, which allows for the characterization of surfaces and interfaces of various crystalline and non-crystalline materials, including glasses and polymers.

Physical Measurements Laboratory
The Physical Measurement Laboratory includes a differential thermal analyzer (DTA) and a dilatometer. The DTA (Perkin-Elmer) monitors the temperature of the sample during heating and cooling, and any endothermic or exothermic transition is detected and appears as a peak on a DT vs. Tref profile. The DTA enables detection of first and second order transitions in the sample, such as melting, crystallization, glass transitions, and solid-state reactions. The DTA operates from -175°C to 1500°C. The second instrument in the physical measurements laboratory is a dilatometer (LINSEIS). The dilatometer provides absolute or differential thermal expansion values of specimens during thermal cycles up to 1850°C. Thermal cycles can be conducted either under a protective gas or vacuum. The maximum resolution of the instrument is approximately 6nm.

Mechanical Properties Laboratory
The Mechanical Properties Laboratory provides mechanical testing in tension/compression over a wide range of loads (up to 100kN), cross-head rates (0.005-500 mm/min) and temperature (-200°C - 1400°C). Two Instron testing machines are available: one with a low cross-head speed which has an environmental chamber with a temperature range from -200°C to 200°C. The second machine has a high cross-head speed with computerized output. Both machines are able to perform low cycle fatigue testing, bending, and shear tests, as well as testing and processing under defined temperature conditions.

Heat Treatment and Processing Laboratory
This laboratory contains 10 different furnaces capable of heating at various temperatures up to 1600°C. Most of the furnaces operate under an ambient air environment, and several are connected to a protective gas environment. Most of the furnaces can contain large samples, of the order of 15cm in diameter. The laboratory includes one arc furnace, and one induction furnace which is operated at 10KHz and high vacuum.
This laboratory also contains a new hot-press bonding furnace. This system consists of a computer controlled 10 ton pressing system with a multiple environment high temperature furnace (up to 1600°C). This system provides for the processing of metal-ceramic and ceramic-ceramic joints, laminates, and hot-pressing of ceramics and ceramic based composites.

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