Special Topics in ChemistryMaterials Chemistry w/ Lab

Catalog description

This laboratory-based course will introduce students to fundamental principles in inorganic chemistry, solid-state chemistry, and materials science. Students will begin with a theoretical framework for bonding at the atomic scale, then take a close look at how electronic and physical structure changes when atoms built up into extended networks such as insulators, semiconductors, and metals. Specific properties that will be examined include electrical and thermal conductivity, magnetism, and optical activity. By the end of the semester students will understand how these materials systems lead to functional or structural technologies and have tools to rationalize how to design materials with economic and sustainable solutions in mind. The course will meet twice a week, with one day devoted to classroom discussions and activities. On the second day we will meet in the lab, and students will perform team-based experiments in materials synthesis and characterization of properties discussed in the classroom. During some weeks, time will be allotted for open-ended projects related to the completed experiments, where students take a deeper dive into an aspect that they find most interesting. At the end of the semester, a research-oriented final project will allow students to examine or develop a materials system of their choosing in order to apply the skills developed throughout the prior experiments.