AMPAC Faculty

Research Focus: Raj Vaidyanathan has established a world-class program in the research and development of shape memory alloys at UCF. The program has had a tremendous impact and has placed UCF’s doctoral students in prominent careers in shape memory alloys (e.g., at NASA, Boeing, Saes Getters etc). The characterization tools employed include in situ neutron diffraction at stress and temperature at Los Alamos National Laboratory and Oak National Laboratory. His research has been supported by NSF (including CAREER), ONR, NASA GRC, NASA KSC, DoD, DoE, Siemens Power, Medtronic, ASRC, and the State of Florida,

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Research Focus: Dr. Sohn’s research and teaching interests include metallic alloy powder processing by gas atomization, additive manufacturing (3D printing) by laser powder bed fusion, microstructural analysis and control, multicomponent intrinsic and interdiffusion in multiphase alloys, protective metallic/ceramic coatings for high-temperature applications, light-weight metallic alloys, metal-matrix composites, thermodynamics and kinetics of phase transformations. His research activities are sponsored by the US Army Research Laboratory, US Department of Energy, Office of Naval Research, Idaho National Laboratory, and industry.

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Research Focus: Dr. Schelling’s research interests include thermal properties of semiconductors. With the increasingly aggressive thermal environments of new technologies, thermal transport is becoming an important issue for device lifetime and functionality. To address fundamental problems in thermal transport, Dr. Schelling uses large-scale atomic simulation.

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Research Focus: Dr. Kushima’s research focuses on understanding the complex nano-scale phenomena through a combination of experiment and atomistic simulation, with particular emphasis on in-situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and energy storage devices. Nano-characterization technique such as in situ TEM is a powerful tool to understand the materials from atomic scales and contribute to the advancement of the technology. It enables us to “see” the atomic-scale behavior of materials in real-time, and atomistic simulation provides theoretical understanding to the observation. These two approaches together will be used to elucidate the underlining mechanisms of the complex electrochemical reactions.

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Research Focus: Dr. Jiang’s research focuses on the materials reliability for advanced interconnect and packaging systems, such as 3D integration and heterogeneous integration. By combining advanced characterization techniques with physics-based modeling and accelerated testing, we investigate the basic material behaviors and failure mechanisms that dictate the performance and reliability of key components in an electronic package. Materials and processing-based solutions are also developed for enhanced performance and improved reliability. Dr. Jiang’s work has been supported by industry sponsors to enable faster and reliable product development.

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Research Focus: Dr. Fang’s research is focusing soft materials. Specifically, he is using the self-assembly of molecules to design and synthesize stimuli-responsive soft nanomaterial for biomedical applications. Technology development such as scanning probe microscopy, liquid crystal-based optical amplification, and soft lithography also play a major role in his research activities. His work has been funded by NSF.

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Research Focus: Dr. Coffey’s research is in the overlapping fields of thin films and electronic materials. This is of interest to the semiconductor industry as metallic nanowires carry current and signals between the transistors. The interconnect nanowires suffer increasing resistivity as the wires become smaller due to surface and grain boundary scattering of electrons. In modern technology, it is these interconnect wires that limit the processor speed and consume the majority of the power used by the chip. His research on next-generation interconnect materials is currently funded by the NSF, SRC, and AFOSR.

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Research Focus: Dr. An’s research focuses on processing-structure-property relationship of advanced materials. In particular, he has worked on polymer-derived ceramics, Al and Mg metal matrix nanocomposites, high-temperature sensors, field-assisted materials processing, and the mechanical behavior of advanced materials. He is known for his research in polymer-derived ceramics, where he played a key role in understanding the electric behavior of this new class of materials and pioneered high-temperature sensors.

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University Distinguished Professor
Chair, Materials Science & Engineering
Nano Initiative Coordinator at UCF
Director of Surface Engineering & Nanotech Lab, DURIP Nanomanufacturing Lab

Sec Joint appointments in NanoScience Technology Center, Advanced Materials Processing & Analysis Center, Materials Science & Engineering, Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, College of Medicine Research Focus: Functionals Materials Processing including Nano/Micro, Bulk Nanomanufacturing, Nanobiotechnology, Surface Engineering, Coatings, Nanoenergetics, Nanotoxicity, and Advanced Analytical Tools

Research Focus: Dr. Seal’s research focuses on the manufacturing of functional materials, sensors, micro-nano systems, green synthesis, rare earth materials, nano-biomedicine, nanomaterials for agricultures and energetics. He has pioneered nanostructured cerium oxide and other metal/oxide platforms (micro to nano) and discovered its antioxidant properties and applied it in various biomedical problems and led to various patents in the area of regenerative nanostructures. His novel work on nanoenergetics also inspired his doctoral student for the successful startup Helicon Chemicals. His research is funded by DOD, NSF, NIH, NIH, NASA, SBIR programs, and numerous industries, and his technology has led to startups and licensed companies.

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