Materials
Research information PhD/MPhil/EngD
PhD: 3 years full-time; 5 years part-time MPhil: 2 years full-time; 3 years part-time EngD: 4 years
Research proposal
Applicants need not submit a detailed research proposal with their application, though they are welcome to do so if they wish. However, they should indicate which area of research they wish to pursue and/or the names of staff members they would be interested in working with and studying the details of our research groups and areas can help with their choice.
Entry qualification
Good degree or equivalent experience.
Departmental support and training for research students
All research students are provided with:
- their own desk and storage space in a communal environment
- access to photocopying facilities, usually paid for by the research project
- opportunities to attend conferences in the UK and overseas
- academic and pastoral support from their project supervisor, plus a Director of Research Degree Programme, who also ensures adequate progress is being made
Research students:
- must complete 30 days training prior to submission of a PhD thesis (20 days for an MPhil), usually spread across the duration of study; training encompasses technical skills as well as presentation skills, business issues, etc
- are expected to attend all Departmental seminars (typically 6 a year) and the Departmental Research Day in May/June. During the latter, 1st and 3rd year students give oral presentations on their work, whilst 2nd year students present posters, ensuring all students receive practice in these essential skills
- have employment opportunities as laboratory demonstrators
- have a very healthy Departmental social life, largely run by postgraduate and undergraduate students via the Materials Engineering Social Society (MESS), including a Christmas quiz, sporting events ranging from a skittles evening in a traditional English pub to a softball competition, and occasional wine tasting.
Research groups
With an annual research income of around £2million, our activities centre on the interactions of structure and properties with processing and product performance for polymers, metals, ceramics and their composites.
Our work covers both fundamental and applied aspects and is often multidisciplinary in nature, involving partners from our extensive network of contacts in the UK and worldwide. Our work is supported by excellent support staff and extensive facilities ranging from materials synthesis to processing and characterisation.
The latter is provided by the Loughborough Materials Characterisation Centre, which houses state-of-the-art, world-class facilities as well as providing a service to industry.
Research Areas
In addition to our research groups many inter-disciplinary projects and topics of particular emphasis are underpinned by the academic expertise of our staff across a number of research areas:
Sustainability
Contact: Dr Noreen Thomas
Email: n.l.thomas@lboro.ac.uk
Research expertise in Materials’ selection, replacement, processing, application and modification, is helping to solve many sustainability issues, including; reduced emissions, recycling and re-use, and replacing toxic components.
Read more on department website →
Nanomaterials
Contact: Professor Mo Song
Email: m.song@lboro.ac.uk
Nanotechnology has the potential to create many new materials and devices with wide-ranging applications. Our research group mainly focuses on synthesis, characterization and applications of nanomaterials.
Read more on department website →
Microstructural Characterisation
Contact: Professor Rachel Thomson
Email: r.c.thomson@lboro.ac.uk
Microstructural characterisation covers a number of key microscopy based analytical processes. Here our team use the world class facilities of the Loughborough Materials Characterisation Centre (LMCC) combined with their expertise and continue to push the boundaries of these techniques.
Read more on department website →
Corrosion and Degradation
Contact: Dr Geoff Wilcox
Email: g.d.wilcox@lboro.ac.uk
Corrosion and degradation are key failure mechanisms. Our research reflects a material-wide understanding and combating of the major causes, from electrochemical reactions, to high temperature oxidation and aggressive environments.
Read more on department website →
Specialist Research Centres
Loughborough Materials Characterisation Centre
The Centre provides a co-ordinated advanced materials characterisation service to the Research Groups in the Department, other University departments, and to industry.
Mr Scott Doak, Dr Gary Critchlow, Dr David Grandy, Dr Keith Yendall, Dr Zhoaxia Zhou
The Centre encompasses the Institute of Surface Science Technology, the Advanced Thermal Methods Unit, the Electron and Optical Microscopy Unit, and the X-ray Unit.
Across the four sub units, the Centre has a wide array of surface analysis techniques such as AES and XPS, thermal methods including micro-TA, electron and optical microscopy including FEGSEM and FEGTEM with a full range of quantitative microstructural analysis capabilities, and X-ray facilities with a high temperature stage. In all over 40 characterisation techniques are available.
How to apply
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