Materials scientists have a fundamental understanding of what occurs on the atomic scale in a crystal under high stresses during elastic or plastic deformation, but in materials that do not have an underlying crystalline structure we’ve only just begun to understand how deformation affects the atomic scale structure.  Most materials can be created in an amorphous state in which the atoms have no long-range structural order.  One common example is silica which can be made into common glass or can crystalize into one of several phases of quartz.  Metallic alloys which are commonly found only as crystalline phases in nature, but can also be forced into an amorphous state if they are deposited energetically, composed of carefully chosen elemental constituents or cooled very quickly from the liquid state.  This research focuses on situations in which a material is composed of both amorphous and nanometer scale crystallites. Our goal is to help guide the development of new, emerging nanocomposite materials with high strength and hardness.

A primary goal of this research is to connect the microscopic structure of materials with the resulting mechanical properties including their elastic and plastic responses.  By making this theoretical connection, we will create predictive models which will help materials scientists and mechanical engineers analyze nano-composite structures and anticipate the effects that microstructure has on the onset of failure mechanisms in such materials.