Materials Science

Sandia excels in innovative fundamental materials science research – developing and integrating the theoretical insights, computational simulation tools and deliberate experiments that provide foundational, predictive understanding of the performance of Sandia’s current and future mission-critical materials in order to provide the solid technical basis for Sandia’s engineering decisions and enabling future mission work.

Why Sandia?

The nation depends on breakthrough materials science to meet critical future-security imperatives. New materials will be vital to providing new capabilities, meeting new systems requirements, and replacing obsolete or unavailable technologies. Materials processing provides the knowledge base to control the fabrication of critical materials.  Read more about Sandia’s Materials Science unique value and mission.

Our Focus

Sandia’s Materials Science focus areas were developed by looking to our past, current, and future research. Our staff have, and must maintain, expertise in the breadth of materials captured under these areas in order to provide the support required across Sandia’s mission work.

Predicting Performance and Reliability

of materials and devices over extended time periods and demanding environments to satisfy obligations for each of Sandia’s mission responsibilities.

Control of Energy, Mass, and Charge Transfer

for enhanced functions, efficiencies, and properties of materials for crosscutting needs in energy, reliability & aging, and energetic materials.

Developing new materials

in particular Next Generation Materials to support our mission as a national security laboratory.

Computational Materials Synthesis and Processing

providing a deeper understanding of the physical principles and putative paradigms that govern growth and synthesis

Novel Characterization and Diagnostic Tools & Techniques

provide the means to enable 21st century materials science research.

Research

Our research uses Sandia’s experimental, theoretical, and computational capabilities to establish the state of the art in materials science and technology. View All Materials Science Research.

Videos

Materials Science in the News

Sandia Labs develop shape-shifting alloy
KOAT, September 04, 2013

Science Cafe: Nano Revolution
New Mexico PBS, May, 2014