Dr. Izabela Szlufarska, Harvey D. Spangler Professor and Chair of the Materials Science and Engineering Department at University of Wisconsin-Madison, will give a seminar titled "Radiation Resistance and Mechanical Response of Materials in Extreme Environments" to the interested faculty and students at Discovery Park.

Abstract

Development of energy-efficient and safe technologies for energy production, transportation, and defense poses ever-increasing demands on materials stability in harsh environments. Ceramics are attractive in this regard because of their high-temperature stability, good corrosion and radiation resistance, and excellent mechanical strength. This talk will be focused on fundamental issues related to stability of ceramics and intermetallics in extreme environments. First, I will discuss the role interfaces play in response to radiation and corrosion. I will demonstrate that in ceramics, the effects of interfaces are closely coupled to the complex defect energy landscape, leading to surprising new phenomena. For example, we discovered that even though ceramics form line compounds, radiation causes segregation of constituent elements to grain boundaries without precipitating new phases, which impacts corrosion resistance. Secondly, I will discuss response of materials to mechanical stresses and high-velocity impact and our recent discovery of new mechanisms of ductility in nominally brittle materials. We found that in the absence of dislocation plasticity, stress-induced amorphous shear bands can increase ductility and toughness. We identified criteria for when such shear bands enable plasticity instead of being pre-cursors to fracture. These mechanisms open the possibility for design of materials that are both strong and ductile.

Biography

Izabela Szlufarska is a Harvey D. Spangler Professor of Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the chair of the Materials Science & Engineering Department. Szlufarska develops and employs theoretical and computational tools to address problems in the areas that span mechanical behavior of materials, interfacial chemistry, and materials design for extreme environments (corrosion, high temperature, radiation). Szlufarska published ~140 peer-reviewed papers. Among her awards are NSF CAREER award, Air Force Office of Scientific Research Young Investigator Award, H.I. Romnes Faculty Fellowship, Vilas Associate Professorship, and TMS Brimacombe Medalist award. She was also placed on the National Academy of Engineering list of Frontiers of Engineering. Prof. Szlufarska has served in a number of leadership and advisory roles, including service as a chair of the Materials Research Society meeting (2016), panel lead for the Department of Energy workshop on basic research needs for future nuclear energy, and as the Editor-in-Chief for the journal of “Current Opinion in Solid State and Materials Science”.