Page History

Chapter 7 
Metallurgy and Materials Science: 1962-1972 
Background 
At the outset of the 1260s, general conditions favored research and development. The launching of an earth satellite by the Soviet Union in October 1957 had dramatized the role of science and technology in international competition, particularly in aerospace. At the same time, the materials needs of other technologies were becoming widely recognized. A list originally drawn up by the President's science Advisory Committee (PSAC) in 1958 and mentioned by Baker (Psaras and Langford, p. 23) named rocket propulsion, nuclear reactors, space flight, and vehicle reentry as requiring materials not available at that time. 
Starting in the late 19505, the Federal government raised the level of its commitment to materials research. Materials centers were planned at universities as part of the National Materials Program (Psaras and Langford, pp. 19f£). The establishment of these centers will be described at the end of this chapter. 
Later in the 1960s, economic conditions began to deteriorate, leading to a recession in 1974. Research support declined with the exception of energy-related research, a special case because of shortages of available oil. Documents of this period reflect the economic constraints; for example, a letter dated December 4, 1969 to President Johnson from Professor King, the head of the Department at the time, mentioned "these times of financial stress." 
Engineering enrollments were declining in the early 1960s, even before the economic downturn. Enrollments in metallurgy followed the same trend. Toward the end of the decade, 
in another unfavorable development, student unrest adversely affected many universities, but at MIT the academic activities were not extensively disrupted. In a different vein, the President's Report for 1968-69 mentioned "increased student involvement" 
in the Department of Metallurgy and Materials Science and "an increased role of the Student Metallurgical Society." 
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In the 1960s, materials science and engineering emerged as a major factor in teaching and research. During this period, in spite of temporary economic setbacks, materials science and engineering received increasing financial support from the public and private sectors. It attracted qualified people from related scientific and technical fields, and promising students in the face of fluctuations in enrollments. Although the evolution of materials science and engineering was a long-term process over several decades, it is appropriate to discuss it in this chapter because it was closely connected with two major developments affecting the Department: a name change involving the term "materials science" and the establishment of the Center for Materials Science and Engineering at MIT. 
The Emergence of Materials Science and Engineering 
By the 1960s, materials science and engineering was an accepted concept. The terms "materials science and engineering" and "materials" were used in the literature and appeared in the titles of books and journals, and in the names of academic departments 
and other organizations. \-. 
Materials science and engineering evolved as the result 
of several converging developments. The most significant were 
\(i) broad intellectual trends in the materials-related basic sciences and the materials disciplines, (ii) scientific and technical innovations, and (iii) organizational changes in industry, universities, and government. A more detailed discussion of these developments and of the characteristics of materials science and engineering can be found in the Introduction to the "Encyclopedia of Materials Science and Engineering" (Bever, pp. xi-xiv). Various aspects of materials science and engineering are covered in the literature (Roy, Committee on the Survey of Materials Science and Engineering \[COSMATj, Cohen, National Commission on Materials Policy-see Bibliography). 
Scientific and technical innovations in the 1940s were of great importance in the evolution of materials science and engineering. The atomic energy project stimulated work on a broad range of materials problems: it required the production of new materials and the investigation of their properties, focused attention on the critical role of materials processing, and stimulated research on newly discovered phenomena such as radiation darnage. The development of the gas turbine and jet engine intensified interest in high-temperature materials. The transistor led to solid state electronics and the development of other electronic materials and devices. 
Among experimental methods, the use of radioactive tracers, the investigation of surface phenomena, and highly sensitive chemical analysis were particularly important. The electron microscope greatly improved image resolution and thus extended the magnification available for the structural investigation of metals and other materials. 
Organizational trends in materials research promoted materials science and engineering. The atomic energy project 
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Students preparing metallographic specimens 
Machining of plastic rod 
depended on the participation of a diverse group of researchers comprising physicists, chemists, metallurgists, ceramists, and others. Their collaboration provided a model for the interdisciplinary approach to materials-problems which has become characteristic of materials science and engineering, especially in mission-oriented research. 
The technical demands of World War II and the postwar economic expansion greatly accelerated the trend toward a new, more inclusive approach to materials research and development. Leading industrial laboratories adopted a policy of fundamental research on materials that was much less directed to specific materials than in the past. Materials research was no longer the exclusive concern of materials-producing industries, but increasingly of materials-using industries. 
A special phase of materials science and engineering, which began in the 19505, was characterized by the interaction of materials developments and applied condensed matter sciences. Semiconductor applications, initiated by the invention of the transistor, developed into the specialty of electronic materials and created connections between materials science and engineering and communication, information handling, control, and other advanced technologies. The achievements of materials science and their technical applications attracted attention whether they affected high-technology products or consumer goods. 
Materials Science and Engineering at MIT 
The academic community shared the interest in materials science and engineering shown by industrial and government research organizations and professional societies. At MITa study program was sponsored by Dean C. Richard Soderberg and planned and conducted by an interdepartmental Committee on Materials Engineering under the chairmanship of Professor Morris Cohen. A study group of nearly 30 faculty members from MIT and other 
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academic institutions and additional participants from industry met in Cambridge on August 18-29,1958. The session promoted an understanding of the nature and scope of materials science and engineering. The study program also resulted in the proposal of an interdepartmental degree in materials engineering. 
Other developments involved the role of materials science and engineering in the Department's curriculum, the designation of degrees, and a change in the name of the Department. Another name change in 1974-75 will be discussed in the next chapter. 
The Institute and the School of Engineering in the 1960s 
The Institute's faculty responded to shrinking enrollments by permitting the course choice to be postponed to the end of the sophomore year. In 1964 the core curriculum was reduced: this afforded students greater flexibility but complicated instruction in upperclass professional subjects. Two new requirements, a science distribution subject and a laboratory subject, created opportunities for Institute-wide undergraduate subjects. 
Gordon Brown became Dean ofEngineering in 1960. His innovative ideas and proposed changes in the School of Engineering were supported by a Ford Foundation grant of $9.25 million. 
The Department 
In the face of lower enrollments and dwindling research support, the Department maintained a remarkably positive posture. New subjects of instruction reflecting progress in the field, successful interdepartmental subjects, and vital research programs characterized its activities. The change in the name of the Department and the establishment of the Center for Materials Science and Engineering, described below, proved to be powerful stimuli. 
Undergraduate Curriculum 
A new subject, Materials Science, was first offered in 1960-61. "Extractive metallurgy all but disappeared from the requirements" and "there now remained no trace of Mineral Engineering" (Floe, King, and Owen, pp. 4, 5). With the extension of interest from metals to materials, the subject Engineering Metals became Engineering Materials. Materials Engineering, a junior level subject, was required of all students in the School of Engineering, except those in Electrical and Chemical Engineering. 
A curriculum revision in 1966 resulted in a return to a single option called Metallurgy and Materials Science, anticipating the new name of the Department. This development was in line both with the professional trend and the reality of small enrollments that precluded options. Floe, King, and Owen comment that "the undergraduate curriculum in Metallurgy and Materials Science with its stress on scientific principles was really a preparation for graduate study." 
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Professor Wulff teaching 
.. - .... 
In 1968, Subject 3.091 Introduction to Solid State Chemistry was first offered by Professor John Wulff, "who invented the subject and taught it with inimitable verve" (Floe, King, and Owen). This subject was later taught by Professors Robert Rose, August Witt, and Ronald Latanision. It was one way of satisfying the Institute-wide undergraduate chemistry requirement. Its combined Fall and Spring enrollment exceeded 500 in recent years, making it the subject with the largest student registration in the Department. 
Graduate Studies 
Graduate students had the following choices: Metallurgy, Mineral Engineering, Ceramics, Materials Engineering, and Electronic Materials. Curiously, Materials Science was not offered as a choice at that time. Materials Engineering thus was the only generic (or materials blind) field of specialization open to graduate students in the Department. 
Metallurgy, the oldest specialty, had the largest number of graduate students, while Mineral Engineering was disappearing. Ceramics was growing steadily both in the number of students and subjects offered. Electronic Materials proved attractive to students and served in some measure as a major in Materials Science. 
Faculty 
Professor Chipman was succeeded as head of the Department in 1962 by Professor Thomas B. King. The total number of Department faculty members declined. Nevertheless, some new members were appointed. As an outstanding example, Professor John W. Cahn added strength to research and analysis in metallurgy (Floe, King, and Owen). 
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