Our Approach

We believe in useful collaboration, hard work, and a healthy amount of fun.
Our group consists of both graduate and undergraduate students. For position opportunity availability, email chmielus@pitt.edu!

Scientific curiosity is very important to us. We enjoy having a diverse group where everyone has a desire to learn while contributing to the scientific knowledge base.

Our Story

Markus Chmielus, PhD began working at the University of Pittsburgh in 2013. Jakub joined the group as the first graduate student, then Amir and Erica. As they graduated with their PhDs, Max and Katerina joined and graduated as Masters. Then Aaron, Ali, Eric and Pierangeli are our newest additions.  Many undergraduates have worked in the group as well, contributing in invaluable ways!

Meet the current group

Alumni

Chuyuan Zheng

Jakub Toman, PhD, now at INL

Erica Stevens, PhD – now at Pitt’s MMCL

Katerina Kimes, Ms – now at ExOne

Amir Mostafaei, PhD – now a faculty at Illinois Institute of Technology

Rafael Rodriguez – now a graduate student at the University of Pittsburgh

Ruby Jiang – now a graduate student at Carnegie Mellon University

Kelsey Shields, UG – now at Estee Lauder

Danielle Brunetta, UG – now at Alcoa

Kaylene Stocking

Xingjian (Dagger) Chen

Lorenzo Monteil

Tyler Paphlam, UG – now a graduate student with Dr. Ohodnicki at the University of Pittsburgh

Emma Dickinson, UG – now a graduate student at Northwestern University

Ryan Loebig

Maxwell McIntyre, MS

Colleen Hilla

Samantha Schloder

Eamonn Hughes

Taylor Russo

Eli Sullivan

Yuval Krimer

Shannon Biery

Meredith Meyer

Raymond Mattioli

Jeffrey Martin

Grant Merkel

Warren Lester

Dinding Tan

Allison Marcus

Dr. Chmielus

Dr. Markus Chmielus is an Assistant Professor in the Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science Department since September 2013 with a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from the Technical University of Berlin and the Helmholtz Center for Materials and Energy, Germany, a postdoc at Cornell University 2010-13 and M.S. degrees in Aerospace Engineering (University of Stuttgart, Germany) and Materials Science & Engineering (Boise State University). Dr. Chmielus’s Advanced Manufacturing and Magnetic Materials Laboratory (AM³) performs research on functional and structural metals on the influence of production and processing parameters on the properties and microstructure.

Lab Focus

The overarching umbrella of all research activities is quantitative characterization of microstructure, defects, mechanical, electrical, magnetic and thermal properties on different length scales using local, national and international facilities including synchrotron and neutron diffraction and collaborations.

Additive Manufacturing

Also known as 3D printing, of metals, and here especially binder jet printing and the influence on post processing on microstructural evolution and properties.

Ni-Mn-Ga

fundamental research, manufacturing, and applications of functional, magnetic materials like Ni-Mn-Ga magnetic shape-memory alloys and magnetocaloric materials, especially the aspect of using additive manufacturing as new avenue to produce these materials. A main interest here is again the understanding of microstructural evolution during during printing and post-processing and how different AM methods and processing affect the functional properties of functional magnetic materials.

Metal Thin Film Deposition

In ultra-high purity conditions and the influence on impurities and deposition parameters on microstructure, phase formation and transformation of pure metals and functional magnetic materials.

Teaching

Experimental demonstrations of important structure-property relationships for metals, ceramics and polymers (Undergraduate).

  • Past.

Methodology for materials selection in mechanical design processes. Includes: (i) design process and consideration, (ii) criteria for materials and their shape selection, and (iii) design case study. Mechanical components have mass; they carry loads; they conduct heat and electricity; they are exposed to wear and to corrosive environments; they are made of one or more materials; they have shape; and they must be manufactured. This course provides knowledge on how these activities are related (Undergraduate).

  • Current.

Continuum mechanics concepts; elastic, plastic, and viscous deformation; strength in metals, ceramics, and polymers. Application of concepts to details of material tests (e.g., Tension, torsion, compression, hardness tests); metallurgical phenomena (e.g., Precipitate strain fields, dislocations, transformations, residual stresses, anistropy); failure (by brittle fracture, ductile fracture, creep, fatigue, wear, hydrogen effects); design of components for industrial use or research equipment (Graduate).

  • Current.

This class is targeted toward students who want to learn more about additive manufacturing in general, different additive manufacturing techniques, and how they can be used to produce parts out of a large variety of materials. We will cover the general difference between subtractive and additive manufacturing, introduce and detail the advantages and disadvantages of energy beam based and non-beam based additive manufacturing methods, and discuss which materials can be additive manufactured. We will also describe as-printed microstructures and properties and their improvement through post-processing. Furthermore, elements of characterization, testing and qualification will be introduced. If circumstances permit, students will be able to tour the Additive Manufacturing Research Laboratory at the Swanson School of Engineering and potentially compare different AM methods in hands-on demonstrations (Graduate and Undergraduate).

  • Current
  • With Dr. Kuhn

This course offers a survey of micro-analytical, microscopy and diffraction methods that are widely used for the analysis of composition, chemistry, structure, scale and morphology of advanced materials. It introduces the most basic concepts required to understand experimental data obtained with these modern techniques. The main objectives of the course are to enable students to interpret and evaluate relevant data sets presented in the research literature and to identify experimental tools to solve a given Nano-research characterization problem. Some prerequisite basic knowledge of the structure of solid matter (e.g. Crystals and amorphous materials), diffraction methods (e.g. X-ray diffraction) and processing-property-structure relationships in materials is expected (Graduate).

  • Past.

Contact Us

636 Benedum Hall, 3700 O’Hara St.

Pittsburgh, PA, 15261, USA

Email: chmielus@pitt.edu

Pitt webpage: https://www.engineering.pitt.edu/Markus_Chmielus/