RESEARCH FOCUS
Tom’s research focuses on elucidating process-structure-property relationships in additively manufactured materials through a suite of multiscale characterization techniques. These techniques primarily consist of optical and electron microscopy, with an emphasis on transmission electron microscopy (TEM). In additive manufacturing (AM), rapid solidification, drastic thermal gradients, and highly nonequilibrium conditions generate complex hierarchical microstructures that are unobserved by traditional manufacturing means. Understanding what types of microstructures form and how they do so is paramount to controlling the AM process as a means of developing tailored material properties. Additionally, Tom’s research strives to develop a method for coupling and automating the analysis of the data collected from these various characterization techniques. These analyzed data, along with measured macroscopic mechanical properties, will assist ADAPT’s data-driven, high-throughput materials informatics approach to understanding process-structure-property relationships for materials and additive manufacturing technologies.
Research funded by the Alliance for the Development of Additive Processing Technologies (ADAPT)
