NanoEngineering

The Department of NanoEngineering (NE) now offers the M.S. and Ph.D. degree in NanoEngineering with a new, unique curriculum centered on our strong research position in nano-biomedical engineering and nanomaterials synthesis and characterization activities. The NanoEngineering Graduate Program provides a course of study for both the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees, with a focus on underlying scientific, technical and engineering challenges for advancing nanotechnology in the controlled synthesis of nanostructured materials, especially for biomedical, energy, and environmentally-related technologies. Our graduate degree program is uniquely designed to educate students with a highly interdisciplinary curriculum, focusing on core scientific fundamentals, but extending the application of that fundamental understanding to complex problems requiring the ability to integrate across traditional science and engineering boundaries. Specific courses in our core cluster address both the fundamental science and the integration of this science into engineering problem solving. Three main educational paths within the single degree title ‘NanoEngineering’ are proposed:

• Biomedical Nanotechnology
• Molecular and Nanomaterials
• Nanotechnologies for Energy and the Environment

The new NE curriculum has the following objectives:

• Prepare students for nanotechnology by providing them with a sound grounding in multidisciplinary areas of nanoscience and nanoscale engineering
• Increase students' understanding of materials and their properties at the atomic and nanometer level, including an understanding of the intimate relationship between material scale (nanostructure) and the properties/functionality of materials
• Prepare graduates who, while skilled in areas of nanoscience and nanoengineering, will be qualified for jobs in traditional science-based industries and government laboratories and, as the nanotechnologies emerge and mature, will be positioned for jobs in these applied areas. This program will be anticipating trends and providing students with integrated, cross-disciplinary scientific knowledge and professional skills
• Educate a new generation of engineers who can participate in, and indeed seed, new high-technology companies that will be the key to maintaining jobs, wealth and educational infrastructures as nanotechnology results in a new industrial revolution
• Enable the students to develop a range of professional, scientific and computational skills that will enhance employment opportunities in a wide range of industrial and governmental institutions
• Prepare students for the workplace through developing their ability to contribute constructively to multidisciplinary teams, learn team engineering principles and methods, to communicate both orally and in written form, and to be familiar with modern, computer-based communication technology. This will be achieved using non-traditional education techniques including group-based problem-based learning, flexible delivery and web-based interactive tutorials.

In NanoEngineering, we design and manufacture devices and systems that exploit the unique properties of nanoscale materials to create entirely new functionality and capabilities. Due to the scale of engineering involved, the field of NanoEngineering is inherently interdisciplinary that often utilizes biochemical processes to create nanoscale materials designed to interact with synthetic inorganic materials. The curriculum is built to address the educational needs of this new engineering field.

The program offers the M.S. degree in NanoEngineering under both the Thesis (Plan I) and the Comprehensive Examination (Plan II). The requirements for the M.S. degree are as follows:

1. All students must complete a total of thirty-six units.
2. All students must complete five Mandatory Core Courses (NANO 201, 202, 203, 204, 205) and one course from any focus area selected from an approved list of graduate courses with the consent of a faculty advisor.Enrollment in NANO 200, as required. See “Courses” for descriptions.
3. Students either complete a thesis (Plan I) or pass a comprehensive examination (Plan II) as described in the “Graduate Studies” section of this catalog.
4. Students must meet all other requirements established by the university.

The three focus areas and related courses are:
Focus 1 – Biomedical Nanotechnology: NANO 210, 242, 243, 244, 247A, 247B, 247C, 262.
Focus 2 – Molecular & Nanomaterials: NANO 227, 230, 234, 239, 242, 250, 251A, 251B, 252, 253, 263
Focus 3 – Nanotechnologies for Energy and the Environment: NANO 212, 255, 257, 258, 259, 260, 261

Students who transfer with some graduate credit or an M.S. from another institution will have their records reviewed by a faculty advisor, and an appropriate individual course of study may be approved. The M.S. program is intended to extend and broaden an undergraduate education with fundamental knowledge in different fields. The degree may be terminal, or obtained on the way to the Ph.D. The degree is offered under both the Thesis Plan I and the Comprehensive Examination Plan II.

M.S. Time Limit Policy: Full-time M.S. students are permitted seven quarters in which to complete all requirements. While there is no written time limit for part-time students, the department has the right to intervene and set individual deadlines if it becomes necessary.

Course requirements: All M.S. students must complete a total of thirty-six units, which include a core of five courses (twenty units).

No more than a total of eight units of NANO 296 and 298 may be applied toward the course work requirement. Units in seminars (NANO 200 and 279) may not be applied toward the degree requirement.

Thesis Plan I: Completion of the research thesis (NANO 299) fulfills twelve (12) units toward the total graduation requirement. The balance is made up of the five (5) core courses (twenty (20) units) and one additional elective course (four (4) units) subject to the restrictions described above.

Comprehensive Examination Plan II: This plan involves course work only and culminates in an oral comprehensive examination based on topics selected from the core courses. In addition to the five (5) core courses (twenty (20) units), one must choose an additional four electives (sixteen (16) units) subject to the restrictions of NANO 279, 296, and 298 described above. A student should consult their academic advisor to choose an appropriate course schedule.

Courses

• NANO 200: Graduate Seminar in NanoEngineering (1)
• NANO 201: Foundations of Nanoengineering I: Introduction to NanoEngineering (4)
• NANO 202: Intermolecular and Surface Forces (4)
• NANO 203: Nanoscale Synthesis & Characterization (4)
• NANO 204: Foundations of Nanoengineering II: Nanoscale Physics & Modeling (4)
• NANO 205: Nanosystems Integration (4)
• NANO 208: Nanofabrication (4)
• NANO 210: Molecular Modeling & Simulations of Nanoscale Systems (4)
• NANO 212: Computational Modeling of Nanosystems (4)
• NANO 227: Structure and Analysis of Solids (4)
• NANO 230: Synchotron Characterization of Nano-Materials (4)
• NANO 234: Advanced Nanoscale Fabrication (4)
• NANO 238: Scanning Probe Microscopy (4)
• NANO 239: Nanomanufacturing (4)
• NANO 240: Polymers (4)
• NANO 241: Organic Nanomaterials (4)
• NANO 242: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology (4)
• NANO 243: Nanomedicine (4)
• NANO 244: Nanomachines and Nanorobots (4)
• NANO 245: Nanoelectronics (4)
• NANO 247A: Advanced Biophotonics (4)
• NANO 247B: BioElectronics (4)
• NANO 247C: Bionanotechnology (4)
• NANO 250: Mechanics of Nanomaterials (4)
• NANO 251A: Magnetic Materials: Principles and Applications (4)
• NANO 252: Biomaterials & Biomimetics (4)
• NANO 253: Nanomaterials and Properties (4)
• NANO 255: Electrochemistry (4)
• NANO 256: Microfluids (4)
• NANO 257: Polymer Science and Engineering (4)
• NANO 258: Nanoscale Transport Phenomenon (4)
• NANO 259: Heterogeneous Catalysis (4)
• NANO 260: Nanofabrication Reaction Engineering (4)
• NANO 261: Nanoscale Energy Technology (4)
• NANO 262: Nanosensors (4)
• NANO 263: Magnetic Nano-devices (4)
• NANO 264: Solid-State  and Nanochemistry (4)
• NANO 265: Thermodynamics of Solids (4)
• NANO 266: Quantum Mechanical Modeling of Materials and Nanostructures (4)
• NANO 279: Seminar in NanoEngineering (4)
• NANO 296: Independent Study in NanoEngineering (4)
• NANO 299: Graduate Research in NanoEngineering (1-12)

Requirements

Admission to the Chemical Engineering and NanoEngineering graduate programs are in accordance with the general requirements of the graduate division, which requires at least a B.S. in some branch of engineering, sciences, or mathematics; an overall GPA of 3.0; and three letters of recommendation from individuals who can attest to the academic or professional competence and to the depth of their interest in pursuing graduate study.

In addition, all applicants are required to submit GRE General Test Scores. A minimum score of 550 on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is required of all international applicants whose native language is not English. Students who score below 600 on the TOEFL are strongly encouraged to enroll in an English as a second language program before beginning graduate work. UCSD Extension offers an excellent English language program during the summers as well as the academic year.

Applicants are judged competitively. Based on the candidate's background, qualifications, and goals, admission to the program is in one of three categories: M.S. only, M.S., or Ph.D. Admission to the M.S. only category is reserved for students for whom the M.S. degree is likely to be the terminal graduate degree. The M.S. designation is reserved for students currently interested in obtaining an M.S. degree but who at a later time may wish to continue in the doctoral degree program. Admission to the Ph.D. Program is reserved for qualified students whose final aim is a doctoral degree. 

Scholarships

• Global Education
• Different Fellowships and Traineeships