EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Micro- and NanoMaterials and Technologies

我们生活在一个被人造材料包围的世界，这些材料是为实现特定目的而设计的，从剃须刀和手机等日常用品的许多组件，到用于保护军事人员的高性能盔甲，以及用于飞机减轻雷击影响的涂层。这些成就是通过深刻理解材料是如何制造的、它具有什么结构(在一系列长度范围内)、产生什么性能以及所有这些因素最终如何决定材料在特定应用中的性能之间的联系而实现的，无论是几分钟还是几十年。通常情况下，选择最合适的材料，然后设计其微观结构，并以具有成本效益和可持续的方式进行加工，使其达到最佳性能，对于新技术的实现至关重要；相反，如果不了解材料的关键作用，可能会导致错失商业机会。目前，缺乏具备满足英国工业需求的材料专业知识水平的人才。微纳材料与技术工业博士中心(IDC In MiNMaT)旨在满足这些需求，为英国提供材料科学和工程博士毕业生，将知识、可翻译的研究专业知识、人际交往技能和信心结合在一起，使他们能够解决最具挑战性的材料问题，并对英国工业的表现和国际影响力产生实际影响。这将通过建立在材料科学和工程领域的国际卓越基础上、在表征方面的世界领先专业知识以及在提供备受推崇的工程博士(EngD)课程方面的成熟记录来实现。这是一个为期四年的研究学位，包括一个教学元素和一个研究元素，尽管在MiNMaT IDC中，这两个元素相互交织在一起，形成了一个连贯的课程，而不是独立的部分。研究工程师(学生被称为研究工程师)与他们的行业赞助商一起，在他们的办公场所为整个项目解决他们的研究问题。他们的重点是解决学术上具有挑战性和与行业相关的processing-microstructure-property-performance关系问题。在所有四年的时间里，精心整合的密集短期课程(通常为期一周，在大学)构成了授课部分。这些课程相辅相成，加强了研究。通过使用一套核心课程，许多物理科学/工程学科的毕业生可以获得必要的材料背景。这种能力是至关重要的，因为如果不增加在本科水平学习材料的学生数量，就不可能满足对材料科学家和工程师的需求。因此，MiNMaT的IDC为英国提供了一个解决方案，以满足英国对具有优秀材料科学和工程研究资历的“就业准备”、全面发展的毕业生的需求。

We live in a world surrounded by man-made materials that have been engineered to fulfill a specific purpose, from the many components of everyday articles such as razors and mobile phones to the high performance armour used to protect military personnel and the coatings applied to aircraft to mitigate the effects of lightning strikes. These achievements have been made possible through a profound understanding of the linkages between how a material is made, what structure it has (over a range of length scales), what properties result and how all of these factors ultimately determine the performance of the material in a specific application, be it for a few minutes or many tens of years. Often selecting the most suitable material, then designing its microstructure and processing it in a cost-effective and sustainable manner such that it is optimised for performance, is crucial to the 'enablement' of a new technology; conversely, failure to understand the vital role of materials can lead to missed business opportunities.Currently, there is a shortage of people with the required level of expertise in materials to meet the needs of UK industry. The Industrial Doctorate Centre in Micro- and NanoMaterials and Technologies (IDC in MiNMaT) aims to meet those needs by providing the UK with materials science and engineering doctoral graduates, with the combination of knowledge, translatable research expertise, interpersonal skills and confidence to enable them to tackle the most challenging materials problems and make a real impact on the performance and international presence of UK industry.This will be achieved by building on a foundation of international excellence in materials science and engineering, world-leading expertise in characterisation and a proven track record in delivering a highly regarded Engineering Doctorate (EngD) programme. This is a four-year research degree comprising a taught element and a research element, although within the MiNMaT IDC they are interwoven to form a coherent programme rather than being distinct parts. The research engineer (as the student is known) is based with their industrial sponsor, working on their research problems at their premises for the whole programme. Their focus is the solution of academically challenging and industrially relevant processing-microstructure-property-performance relationship problems. Taking place over all four years, carefully integrated intensive short courses (normally one week duration, at the University) form the taught component. These courses build on each other and augment the research. By using a core set of courses, graduates from a number of physical science/engineering disciplines can acquire the necessary background in materials. This capacity is essential as demand for materials scientists and engineers cannot be met without adding to the numbers of students who have studied materials at undergraduate level. Thus, the IDC in MiNMaT offers a solution to the UK's need for 'employment-ready', well-rounded graduates with excellent materials science and engineering research credentials.