APPLIED SCIENCES (APPL)

Students will engage with their inquiry through a combination of literature-based research from primary sources, writing and the creation of an object from wood in the university makerspace. In addition, students will choose to present their inquiry from a mode of their choice including class presentation, creating a video, interviewing someone who studies or uses wood or trees, or a mode of their own design.

This first-year seminar introduces students to the new scientific language of convergence research. Through studying the grand challenges of engineering, we will learn how experts from various fields intermix their knowledge, theories, methods, data, and research communities, enabling new discoveries to emerge. Students will participate in various in-class activities, group discussion and problem-solving coaching to enhance understanding of how chemistry, physics, materials science, biology, math, and computer sciences are applied to engineering.

Special topics course. Content will vary each semester.

Engineers help to design and build solutions to the world's problems. This course will explore some of the fundamental skills and tools in engineering. You will write software to develop computational models and measure data from low fidelity prototypes of real world systems. You will interpret these results to improve system designs. You will also explore topics in biomimicry and sustainable engineering. Throughout the class, you will develop strong professional and communication skills.

Students work in flexible, interdisciplinary teams to assess opportunities, brainstorm, and prototype solutions. Students design their solutions to meet a set of specifications, while also considering the user's needs. Design thinking and physical prototyping skills are developed through fast-paced, iterative exercises in a variety of contexts and environments.

Specialty topics in applied physical sciences for undergraduates.

Specialty topics in applied physical sciences for undergraduates.

Engineers develop systems that interact with the physical world by taking measurements from sensors and activating indicators. To interface with these sensors and indicators, you need electrical circuits! In this class, you will learn the basics of circuit design and analysis to make measurements, such force, temperature, pH and heart rate, and acquire these signals to a computer. You will complete your measurement system by developing circuits to activate LEDs, motors, and other indicators.

This course will be an introduction to topics in materials science and with a strong focus on materials, processing and engineering and how design plays a pivotal role in materials selection. A central theme will be in-class demonstrations and hands-on experiments so you will experience first-hand why materials do what they do and how to select the appropriate material for the right application. It's a materials world after all!

We will go beyond the basics of introductory physics and learn the principles and methods that engineers use to understand, predict, and control the behavior of force, motion, and energy in the physical world. Topics covered will include engineering statics, dynamics, and fundamental fluid mechanics. As engineers, we must analyze and design processes that interact with and transform the physical world. This requires us to apply fundamental concepts to achieve predictable and safe results.

Specialty topics in applied physical sciences for undergraduates.

This course is intended for first-time APPL undergraduate learning assistants and will supplement your experience as a ULA. As a ULA, you play a critical role in supporting student learning. This course is designed to equip you with foundational knowledge in teaching and learning theories, enabling you to be an effective educator and mentor in APPL courses. By integrating theory with hands-on experience, you will gain insights that support lifelong learning and leadership in engineering education.

Permission required and 3.0 or higher in course taught. This course is for APPL undergraduate learning assistants. As a ULA, you play a critical role in supporting student learning. This course is designed for you to practice and demonstrate your skills as an educator and mentor in APPL courses. Through your experience, you will gain insights that support lifelong learning and leadership in engineering education.

A research experience provides students with practical experience in a research lab, performing work that is relevant to their UNC education. The research internship will develop and enhance the students' professional skill set and involve experiences that allow students to have responsibility for results that are of value to the research laboratory.

Through independent study, students gain practical experience in an independent project either on campus or off campus, performing work that is relevant to their studies in Applied Physical Sciences. The independent study will develop and enhance the students' professional skill set and involve experiences that enhance their entrepreneurial mindset. Students are mentored by a faculty member and others at UNC who have relevant expertise.

Specialty topics in applied physical sciences for undergraduates.

Thermodynamics can be thought of as the study of energy. Virtually every application has some connection to thermodynamics, underscoring the significance of learning its basic principles in engineering education. The course will cover the basic concepts of thermodynamics, including the first and second laws of thermodynamics. These principles will be introduced and explored in a way that focuses on understanding the basic concepts through exploring different natural and industrial applications.

Permission of the instructor. Advanced specialty topics in applied physical sciences for undergraduates.

At the intersection between electrical engineering, optics, and computer science, this course explores how optoelectronic materials can be turned into optoelectronic devices to build high performance optical instruments. The course features many hands-on activities that include electronics, with the study of sensors operating under low light and high noise conditions, custom optical system design, imaging and holography systems, as well as computational imaging techniques using MATLAB (basic programming experience in any language is sufficient).

This course will cover both fundamental and applied aspects of modern materials science. We will discuss how to select materials based on their properties and how they can be processed into products that you encounter in everyday life. A strong focus will be on the relationship between processing, structure (development), and properties of solid materials, such as metals, ceramics, and polymers.

Developing electronic systems that can seamlessly integrate with biological systems represents a pivotal foundation for building a smart healthcare platform, advanced clinical technology, and beyond. Through multiple hands-on projects, this course will explore and discuss: 1) electronic materials, mechanisms, and designs at the biotic-abiotic interface, 2) their impacts for a wide range of applications ranging from medicine, robotics, to human augmentation, and 3) the associated ethics that aim to harmonize the development pathways.

What would it mean to create a fantastic life for plastics? Plastics of today are associated with their negative impacts on environments from fossil-fuel dependency to persistent plastic waste and microplastic contamination. This class uses a lifecycle approach to understand the social, environmental, and economic costs of plastic and the lens of human-centered design to explore technological solutions to plastic problems. Practice your design skills from stakeholder identification and information gathering to concept generation, testing and refinement as you reimagine the lifecycle of plastic products. Learn more about how the plastic products around us are made, used and disposed of.

What kind of material is Sponge Bob? What about his pet snail, Gary? We are taught that there are solids, liquids, and gases. However, some materials challenge this description, such as foams, plastics, pastes, skin, hair, and nails. These are soft materials, and they are everywhere: sunscreen, insulation, and car tires. In this course, we will learn about soft materials' properties, how they are processed in industry, and how to design novel soft materials.

The course introduces the optical and electronic processes in electronic materials, including inorganic, organic and hybrid, that govern the behavior of practical solid-state optoelectronic devices. We begin with an overview of fundamental science of electronic materials and devices. We then discuss their optoelectronic properties, including topics from photophysics, charge transport and injection. Emphasis will be equally placed on the use of both inorganic and organic electronic materials in organic electronic devices including LEDs, solar cells, photodetectors, transistors, and so on. The material preparing process and device fabrication techniques will also be introduced. Permission of instructor for students lacking prerequisite.

The 21st century has already been marked with substantial discoveries in the interface of materials science, biology, and medicine that have a profound effect on our future. The course will focus on all classes of biological materials such as: biologically derived materials, natural and synthetic biomaterials, and bioinspired materials. In addition, the course will highlight the use of nanoscale materials and techniques to rapidly advance our understanding of human biology and the practice of medicine.

This course will be a broad introduction to materials science characterization methods. Lectures will complement project based, team executed laboratories focused on solving problems using characterization methods. Lectures will present core fundamentals of the science underlying the methods, with special attention devoted to how students can teach themselves the practical aspects of the instrumentation. This parallels a professional setting where laboratory scientists and engineers need to solve problems by understanding which methods are most appropriate, and assembling the knowledge gained into a synthesis of understanding. The teams will then prepare their results in each of five formats during the course.

Topics vary from semester to semester.

An ideal internship provides students with practical experience in an organization outside of UNC, doing work that is relevant to their UNC education. The internship should develop and enhance the students' professional skill sets and involve experiences that allow students to have responsibility for results that are of value to the organization.

Students undertake independent research with a faculty mentor. In order to register for this class, students must submit a learning contract and research proposal for approval. At the end of the semester, students submit a final report that describes their research. Students are encouraged to present their work either internally at UNC or externally at a conference or symposium.

Permission of the director of undergraduate studies is required. Independent study under a member of the applied physical sciences faculty. Approved learning contract required.

The Innovation Imperative examines the entrepreneurial journey from idea generation to real-world impact, emphasizing the tools and strategies required for success. Through interactive lectures, engaging case studies, and a practice-oriented semester-long capstone project, students will learn to evaluate opportunities, craft business models, and address ethical and business challenges. What sets this course apart is its immersive approach to entrepreneurial thinking;you won't just study innovation, you'll practice it. Working with real-world challenges and guided by an instructor who brings both academic expertise, executive investment experience, a record of commercialization impact, and industry insights, you'll develop the strategic mindset and practical toolkit.

Advanced specialty topics in applied physical sciences for undergraduates and graduates.

Advanced specialty topics in applied physical sciences for undergraduate and graduates.

In this course intended for graduate student researchers, we will parallel the discovery process taught in APPL 110: human-centered design, needs identification, and the iterative design and prototyping process. You will learn technical areas common to research laboratories -hardware selection, gas and liquid management, material compatibilities, electronics and data acquisition. In addition to the BeAM makerspace focused skills development activities, students will work on a personal project related to their laboratory work or research topic.

Developing electronic systems that seamlessly integrate with biological systems represents a pivotal foundation for building a smart healthcare platform, advanced clinical technology, and beyond. This course will explore: 1) electronic materials, mechanisms, and designs at the biotic-abiotic interface, 2) their impacts for a wide range of applications from medicine, robotics, to human augmentation, and 3) the associated ethics. It will also highlight a multifaceted understanding of materials and their integration strategies that improve functionalities (sensing, stimulation, or others) of fabricated devices, and innovate the ways electronics interact with biological counterparts. We will utilize BeAM makerspace for implementing our hands-on activities.