Dec 06, 2025  
2025-2026 Catalog SVC 
    
2025-2026 Catalog SVC

ENGR 170 - Fundamentals of Materials Science


Credits: 5
Variable Credit Course: No

Lecture Hours: 55
Lab Hours: 0
Worksite/Clinical Hours: 0
Other Hours (LIA/Internships): 0

Course Description: An introduction to materials science. Explores the relationship between material processing, structure, properties, and manufactured product performance. Topics include metallic, ceramic, and polymeric materials; multiphase systems; amorphous and crystalline microstructures; and their relationship with thermal, optical, electrical, chemical, and mechanical properties. Other topics include: phase equilibrium, heat treatments, strengthening and failure mechanisms, etc.

Prerequisite: CHEM& 161 with a grade of C or higher or concurrent enrollment.
Meets FQE Requirement: No
Integrative Experience Requirement: No

Student Learning Outcomes
  1. Explain the importance of processing-structure-properties-performance relationships in engineering design.
  2. Classify different materials (e.g., metals; ceramics; polymers) according to the types of interatomic bonding, atomic structure, and resulting properties.
  3. Describe how slip systems defined using Miller/Bravais indices are related to mechanical failure.
  4. Explain how defect type and mechanical performance are related.
  5. Describe the relationship between diffusion mechanisms, material treatments (e.g., annealing; precipitation hardening), and mechanical performance.
  6. Use the outputs of common materials testing standards (e.g., ASTM A370) in engineering design.
  7. Explain under what engineering design scenarios the various failure modes (e.g., fracture; fatigue; creep) should be considered.
  8. Utilize phase diagrams to predict phase formation under specific processing conditions.
  9. Explain the importance of phase diagrams in manufacturing process design.
  10. Design heat treatments achieve specified microstructures using isothermal and continuous cooling transformation diagrams.
  11. Explain how some of the previous learning outcomes are applicable to ceramic, polymeric, and composite materials.
  12. Describe the different forms of corrosion and how they can be mitigated.
  13. Relate some common electrical properties of materials to the design of electronic devices.

Course Contents
  1. Providing context: What is materials science and why is it important to study it?
  2. Introduction to mechanical properties of materials, stress-strain diagram, and modes of failure (e.g., fracture; fatigue; creep)
  3. Periodic table, atomic structure, interatomic bonding
  4. Crystal structures, unit cells, crystallographic geometry (e.g., points; directions; planes), crystalline and noncrystalline materials
  5. Imperfections in solid materials including vacancies, impurities, dislocations, interfacial defects, etc.
  6. Plastic deformation, dislocations, strengthening mechanisms, and recovery, recrystallization, and grain growth
  7. Diffusion mechanisms, steady- and non-steady state diffusion
  8. Solubility limits, phases, microstructure, and phase diagrams (e.g., unary; binary; ternary)
  9. Phase transformations, kinetics, stable and metastable equilibrium, isothermal and continuous cooling transformation diagrams
  10. Other materials: Ceramic structures, mechanical properties, common processing techniques, and applications
  11. Other materials: Polymer structures, mechanical properties, common processing techniques, and applications
  12. Other materials: Composites, mechanical properties, manufacturing techniques, and applications
  13. Corrosion of materials, forms of corrosion and methods of prevention, applications
  14. Electrical properties, conduction, semiconductivity, dielectic behavior, applications


Instructional Units: 5