Video showing students and faculty in the Materials Science and Engineering department engaged in research, lab work, and classroom activities.
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Materials Science and
Engineering
Core Faculty
TMI's core faculty lead cutting-edge research by running their grants through the institute, fostering collaboration and resource sharing.
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Graduate Program
Our Materials Science and Engineering program is one of the best in the nation, and our graduates go on to be leaders in their fields.
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Research
TMI supports interdisciplinary research at UT Austin, with over 100 faculty focusing on clean energy, nanotechnology, and advanced materials using our state-of-the-art facilities.
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Equipment
Instrument Capabilities
The Disco dicing saw is an automatic dicing saw capable of cutting wafers up to 6” diameter. High speed diamond blade produces accurate cuts with minimal chipping. Ultrapure water is flowed onto the blade to keep blade and sample cool during cutting.
TMI offers the 00777-V045-011-QKP blade from Advanced Dicing Technologies.
Blade characteristics:
- Hubless resin-bond diamond blades for cutting silicon, quartz, and ceramics.
- Outer diameter: 55.6 mm
- Inner diameter: 40 mm
- Blade thickness: 0.011 inches
- Grit size: 40–60
TMI staff can assist users in replacing the blade with one that is more appropriate for specific processes.
Fees and Policies
- UT Users: $35/hour
- Higher Education/State Agencies (Assisted): $92/hour
- Corporate/External Users (Assisted): $94/hour
- Higher Education/State Agencies (Unassisted): $64/hour
- Corporate/External Users (Unassisted): $65/hour
A cleanroom entry fee will be charged in addition to the cleanroom facility usage fee.
- UT Users $6
- Higher Education/State Agencies: $10
- Corporate/External Users: $10
Traning
Users should register for the required in-person training course through UTLearn.
Instrument Capabilities
The Denton thin-film deposition system can be used to thermally deposit up to four metals sequentially and is equipped with sample rotation control. The system has four sources: two for boats and two for wire materials.
Fees and Policies
Cleanroom Entry fee: (The cleanroom entry fee is charged in addition to the cleanroom facility usage fee)
- UT Users: $6
- Higher Education/State Agencies: $10
- Corporate/External Users: $10
Cleanroom Facility
- UT Users: $35/hour
- Higher Education/State Agencies (Assisted): $92/hour
- Corporate/External Users (Assisted): $94/hour
- Higher Education/State Agencies (Unassisted): $64/hour
- Corporate/External Users (Unassisted): $65/hour
Please contact Dr. Raluca Gearba and/or James Smitherman to schedule a training session.
Instrument Capabilities
The Dektak 6M is a film step-height measurement tool capable of measuring steps from 260 microns down to 10 nm. The system can also be used to profile surface topography and measure surface roughness in the nanometer range. The system is currently equipped with a 25-micron-radius, high-aspect-ratio stylus
Maximum acceptable sample size is 6 inches.
Fees and Policies
A cleanroom entry fee will be charged in addition to the cleanroom facility usage fee.
- UT Users: $35/hour
- Higher Education/State Agencies (Assisted): $92/hour
- Corporate/External Users (Assisted): $94/hour
- Higher Education/State Agencies (Unassisted): $64/hour
- Corporate/External Users (Unassisted): $65/hour
Cleanroom Facility
- UT Users $6
- Higher Education/State Agencies: $10
- Corporate/External Users: $10
Traning
Users should register for the required in-person training course through UTLearn.
Instrument Capabilities
Provides thin-film deposition through electron-beam evaporation and magnetron sputtering, enabling controlled deposition of a wide range of metallic and other materials
Key features:
- E-beam evaporation: Four 15 cc electron-beam sources for deposition of metals and selected oxides.
- RF sputtering: One RF sputtering head for deposition of oxides and metals.
- DC sputtering: One DC sputtering head for deposition of metals.
- Sputtering targets: 3-inch diameter targets with thicknesses of 1/8–1/4 inch.
- Base pressure: Approximately 5 × 10⁻⁷ Torr, achieved after overnight pumping.
- Thickness monitoring: Film thickness is monitored using a quartz crystal sensor (QCM).
- Sample handling: Sample rotation is available during deposition.
- Process control: The entire deposition process is manually controlled
All materials must be provided by the user.
Fees and Policies
A cleanroom entry fee will be charged in addition to the cleanroom facility usage fee.
- UT Users: $35/hour
- Higher Education/State Agencies (Assisted): $92/hour
- Corporate/External Users (Assisted): $94/hour
- Higher Education/State Agencies (Unassisted): $64/hour
- Corporate/External Users (Unassisted): $65/hour
Cleanroom Facility
- UT Users: $6
- Higher Education/State Agencies: $10
- Corporate/External Users: $10
Traning
Please contact Dr. Raluca Gearba and/or James Smitherman to schedule a training session.
Texas Materials Seminar Series
The Texas Materials Seminar Series features MSE 397 Seminars, TMI Distinguished Lectureships, and TMI Special Seminars, where leading faculty and professionals from around the world share cutting-edge innovations and advancements in materials engineering with our students.
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$12M+
In Grant Funding
20+
Research Patents
10K+
Sq. Ft. of Research Labs
News
Zhantao Chen Publishes New Article on AI-assisted Tool
Zhantao Chen, an Assistant Professor in Mechanical Engineering and a TMI-affiliate, has published an article on an AI tool in Nature Machine Intelligence. The article used AI to help researchers in ways that would assist in experimental tasks that are often labor-intensive and tiresome.
Terry Zheng & Yu Group Publish New Work on Water-Based Electrolytes
Materials Science and Engineering graduate student Tianrui (Terry) Zheng, under the supervision of Dr. Guihua Yu has published research in Advanced Materials introducing a biphasic electrolyte architecture that combines the strengths of water-based (aqueous) and organic-based electrolytes for long-duration, high-rate zinc metal batteries.
Get Better Sleep With Ultrasound Patch That Boosts REM Rest
A wearable bioelectronic device increased REM sleep in real-world trials, without invasive surgery or medication.
Published by UT News.
Yuebing Zheng Awarded 'New Directions' Seed Funding from UT OVPR
Yuebing Zheng was awarded seed funding through the University's Office of the Vice President for Research, Scholarship and Creative Endeavors. The 'New Directions in Research' grants are one time payments that give faculty an opportunity to obtain proof-of-concept or pilot data for future, larger grants.
Terry Zheng Awarded UT Chevron Energy Graduate Fellowship
Tianrui (Terry) Zheng, a Materials Science & Engineering graduate student working with Dr. Guihua Yu, is a recipient of the 2026-2027 UT Chevron Energy Graduate Fellows Award from UT's Energy Institute.
