2015 Physical Metallurgy GRC: Frontiers in Physical Metallurgy

Gordon Research Conferences, East Greenwich RI

Investigators

Abstract

NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: The 2015 Gordon Research Conference (GRC) on Physical Metallurgy reviews the current state of knowledge with respect to key aspects of the discipline. The presenters, discussion leaders, poster presenters and other participants debate the state of the art and which problems are most deserving of the researchers in the field. The GRC format emphasizes equal parts presentation and discussion, with only 22 talks altogether and active leadership of the discussion, which maximizes the opportunities for young researchers to learn about new ideas and problems. The presenters and discussion leaders have been selected based on their leadership in their respective areas and for their capacity for thought-provoking lectures. We anticipate that the conference attendance is close to the maximum of 200, of which approximately 40 % are expected to be students and postdocs. Therefore the educational impact on young researchers is substantial. We expect about 10 % to be assistant professors i.e. academics at an early career stage. The technical topics include 3D printing of metals, image analysis and data science. The 3D printing of metals is a prime example of a new and potentially disruptive technology that also has the potential to open up new lines of research in physical metallurgy because of its novel processing characteristics. Therefore the technical impact of the meeting is likely to be high because of the unusual mix of topics. TECHNICAL SUMMARY: The 2015 Gordon Research Conference on Physical Metallurgy examines the future of the discipline. Revolutionary new high-resolution experimental tools are emerging that permit multi-modal characterization in all three spatial dimensions as well as time. At the same time, theory is maturing and modeling/simulation methods to test it are advancing at a tremendous pace. These are tools that allow us to address a key issue, which is 'How to exploit materials for best effect'? Accordingly, the topics that are addressed in order to understand where the current frontiers in Physical Metallurgy lie include: nucleation of precipitation, dislocations, damage; deterministic versus statistical modeling, e.g. fatigue cracking; microstructural design on the 5-1000 nm size scale; studies and modeling of ductility - as a proxy for failure; science behind modern processing techniques (rapid prototyping, interface bonding, plasma sintering); designing metastable structures, e.g. metallic glasses, nanostructures, layered composites and coatings; advanced microscopy and image analysis; and additive manufacturing (3D printing). As is the tradition of the Gordon Research Conferences, the meeting is founded on several fundamental pillars, namely to explore the frontiers of the discipline, to foster debate on the future of Physical Metallurgy, to present unpublished and speculative work, and to engage world-class speakers. Junior researchers i.e. postdocs and students are encouraged to attend because a large fraction of the available time is devoted to discussion and debate. To emphasize this point, the time devoted to talks is roughly equal to the time for discussion and presenters are strongly encouraged to discuss current, unpublished work, based on strict rules that bar citation or quotation from the meeting. In summary, this meeting offers a unique opportunity to learn about new developments and trends in Physical Metallurgy.