About the DMI

Welcome to the website for Duke's Materials Initiative!

Meeting the grand challenges of our time, from harvesting solar energy economically to securing cyberspace to developing better medical treatments, requires new and fundamentally improved materials. Innovative and interdisciplinary research and education can furnish the needed materials and technologies.

The Duke Materials Initiative (DMI) was created to enable bold, innovative and transformative materials science and engineering advances that are only possible when extending beyond and crossing the boundaries between traditional disciplines.

Materials science is about designing a better world.


Participating Duke Schools & Departments


DMI provides strategic leadership to undertake this by harnessing the distinct combination of interdisciplinary expertise in technical and societal disciplines, research focus, development of advanced experimental and computational tools and paradigm-shifting education available at Duke.

DMI leverages the strengths of Duke and accelerates forward momentum into new frontiers of materials science and engineering. DMI’s vision is to foster innovation and sustained excellence in materials science and engineering research and education by creating a culture that transcends traditional departmental and school boundaries.

This website is a portal to the materials science and engineering community at Duke. We encourage you to browse content about our research efforts, affiliated graduate degree programs, recent news and special events.

Stefan ZauscherStefan Zauscher

Co-Director, Duke Materials Initiative
Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
+1 919 660-5360
zauscher@duke.edu
Research Profile



Christoph SchmidtChristoph Schmidt

Co-Director, Duke Materials Initiative
Hertha Sponer Distinguished Professor of Physics
+1 919 660-2708
cfschmidt@phy.duke.edu
Research Profile