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Improving lives by making stuff!
In the Materials Physics track, you will become an expert in the research and development of new materials in biomedical or electronic applications.
Materials Physics is one of the four specialisation tracks of the Master’s Degree Programme in Physical and Chemical Sciences. The other tracks of the programme are Astronomy and Space Physics, Materials Chemistry, and Theoretical Physics.
In the Master´s Degree Programme in Materials Physics, you will work in an active research group together with other students, post-docs and senior researchers on solving problems in e.g. energy efficiency and drug delivery. In addition to the theoretical basis of materials physics, you will also learn to use state-of-the-art research equipment with hands-on courses.
Upon graduation, you will be able to use the diverse set of skills acquired as part of this track, including experimental, theoretical and numerical techniques to produce and analyse new physical projects.
Academic Excellence & Experience
The aim of the Master’s education is to support you to become an independent expert who can evaluate information critically, plan and execute research projects to find new knowledge, and solve scientific and technological problems independently and as part of a group.
At the University of Turku, the research and teaching of materials physics have two focal areas bio- and electronic materials. In biomaterials, you can study e.g. pharmaceutical vectors, nanoporous materials in pharmaceutics and dissociation of DNA molecules under radiation. In electronics materials, possible topics include semiconducting, magnetic and superconducting materials, spintronics and nanocontacts. You will study the physical basis of current and future electronics.
Master's Thesis & Topics
The Master’s degree programme includes a compulsory thesis component (30 ECTS), which corresponds to six months of full-time work. The thesis is to be written up as a report based on a combination of a literature review and an original research project that forms the bulk of the thesis.
The thesis is an independently made research project but the project will be carried out under the guidance of leading researchers in the field at the University of Turku. It is expected that the student will be embedded within an active research group or experimental team, thereby providing ample opportunity to discuss results and exchange ideas in a group setting.
Recent examples of thesis titles in materials physics have been:
Self-organised artificial pinning structure in small-scale YBCO films grown on an advanced IBAD-MgO based template.
Fabrication and characterisation of resistive memories based on Pr6Ca0.4MnO3.
Photo-luminescence of thermally carbonised and wet-oxidised porous silicon.
Physical and chemical characterisation methods for metal powders used for the additive manufacturing process.
Surface properties of GaN- and AlGaN-semiconductors and their modification.
Geometric corrections in computer tomography images.
Mass spectroscopy investigation of fragmentation of uridine and cytidine molecules.
Specialisation Tracks
The Master’s Degree Programme of Physical and Chemical Sciences has four tracks. A short description of this specialisation track is given below.
The studies of Materials Physics and Materials Chemistry give you an ability to understand and to develop the properties of materials from molecules and nanoparticles via metals, magnetic and semiconducting compounds for pharmaceutical and biomaterial applications. After graduation, you will be familiar with the current methodologies, research equipment and modern numerical methods needed to model properties of materials used in research and technology. Note that there is a sister programme (Master’s Degree Programme in Biomedical Sciences) with a specialisation in medicinal chemistry.
Other tracks:
Astronomy and Space Physics
Materials Chemistry
and Theoretical Physics.
