Subject Guide: Materials Science and Engineering

Core Research Tools in Materials Science and Engineering

These tools provide the best starting points for research in Materials Science and Engineering. To dig deeper, explore the other categories in this guide.

Melvyl
Library catalog for the UC System. Find call numbers, locations, and online access for books, journals, conference proceedings, and more.
A Brief Guide to Melvyl

INSPEC
Most comprehensive article index for physics, materials science, electrical engineering, computer science, and related fields. Find journal articles and conference papers.

Web of Science
Article index covering the core journals in all scholarly fields. Provides cited reference searching.

Metadex
Covers research on metals and alloys. Lists journal articles, conference proceedings, and other materials.

Engineered Materials Abstracts
Covers research on polymers, ceramics, and composite materials. Lists journal articles, conference proceedings, and other materials.

Finding Overviews

Use encyclopedias and handbooks to find background information and overviews for your research. They also often contain data covering properties and specifications of materials.

• AccessScience
  Online version of the the McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology and the McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms.

• ASM Handbooks Online

• Comprehensive Composite Materials

• Dekker Encyclopedia of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology

• EMIS Datareviews Series.
  Selected titles:
  • No. 4: Properties of Silicon. IEE, 1988.
    TK7871.15.S55.P76 1988 Reference
  • No. 16: Properties of Gallium Arsenide, 3rd ed. IEE, 1996.
    TK7871.15.G3.P76 1996 Reference
  • No. 17: Properties of Wide-Band Gap II-VI Semiconductors. IEE, 1997.
    QC611.8.W53.P76 1997
  • No. 19: Properties of Amorphous Silicon & Its Alloys. IEE, 1998.
    TK7871.15.S55.P73 1998
  • No. 21: Properties, Processing & Applications of Indium Phosphide. IEE, 1999.
    TK7871.15.I53.P763 2000
  • No. 26: Properties, Growth & Applications of Diamond. IEE, 2001.
    TK7871.15.D53.P76 2001
  • No. 29: Properties of Amorphous Carbon. IEE, 2003.
    QC176.83.P76 2003
  Other books in the EMIS Datareviews Series can be found by searching Melvyl. Use the Advanced search mode to search for "emis datareviews" with Series as your search type.
  
  

• Encyclopedia of Condensed Matter Physics

• Encyclopedia of Materials

• Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology

• ENGnetBASE.
  Compilation of over 500 engineering handbooks published by CRC Press. Selected materials science titles include:
  • Applied Materials Science: Applications of Engineering Materials in Structural, Electronics, Thermal, and Other Industries. 2001.
  • CRC Materials Science and Engineering Handbook (3rd ed). 2001.
  • Encyclopedia of Materials, Parts and Finishes (2nd ed.) 2002.
  • Handbook of Nanoscience, Engineering & Technology. 2003.
  • Handbook of Optical Materials. 2003.

• Engineered Materials Handbook. 4 volumes. ASM International, 1987-1991.
  TA403.E497 1987 Reference

• Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology

• Knovel

• Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry

To access other reference tools, consult our complete list of Electronic Books or browse the Engineering Library Reference Collection under the call number areas TA402-TA490, and TN690.

Finding Materials Properties Data

• ASM Alloy Phase Diagrams Center

• ASM Handbooks Online

• CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics

• Combined Chemical Dictionary

• CRC Materials Science & Engineering Handbook

• Dictionary of Commonly Cited Compounds

• International Critical Tables of Numerical Data, Physics, Chemistry and Technology

• International Tables for Crystallography
  • Volume A Space-group symmetry
  • Volume A1 Symmetry relations between space groups
  • Volume B Reciprocal space
  • Volume C Mathematical, physical and chemical tables
  • Volume D Physical properties of crystals
  • Volume E Subperiodic groups
  • Volume F Crystallography of biological macromolecules
  • Volume G Definition and exchange of crystallographic data
  
  

• Knovel Critical Tables

• Landolt-Börnstein
  Selected sections:
  • Group III Condensed Matter
  • Group IV Physical Chemistry
  • Group VIII Advanced Materials and Technologies

• MatWeb

• MEMS Material Database

• NIST Ceramics WebBook

• Polymers: A Property Database

• Smithsonian Physical Tables

• University of California Material Safety Data Sheets Resources

• WebElements Periodic Table

• Binary alloy phase diagrams. 2nd ed. 3 volumes.
  TN690.B5281 1990 Reference

• Handbook of Ternary Alloy Phase Diagrams. 10 Volumes. 1995.
  TN690.V493 1995 Reference

• Pearson's Handbook: Crystallographic Data for Intermetallic Phases. Desk Edition. 2 Volumes.
  TN690.4.V55 1997 Reference

Finding Journal Articles and Conference Papers

Journal articles and conference papers are the primary means of disseminating research in engineering. As such, they are essential references within quality research. Use article databases to find journal articles and conference papers relevant to your research.

To access other article databases, consult our complete list of Article Databases.

Locating Full Text Online or in the Library: Many article databases offer the UC-eLinks service, providing links to full-text articles online and automated library catalog searches. If these links fail, you can search for the journal title or conference name yourself in Melvyl.

Related Guides:
Getting Started with UC-eLinks
How to Find Journal Articles
How to Find Conference Proceedings

Finding Electronic Journals

Search the Electronic Journals database for other ejournals at UCB. If you don't find the title there, search Melvyl.

Selected Research Journals

Browse key journals in your field to keep abreast of new developments and identify interesting research directions. This list is not at all comprehensive, so ask your professors about other key journals directly related to your research.

• Acta Materialia
• Advanced Functional Materials
• Advanced Materials
• Annual Review of Materials Research
• Applied Physics Letters
• Biomaterials
• Chemistry of Materials
• Engineering Fracture Mechanics
• Intermetallics
• International Journal of Fatigue
• JOM: the Journal of the Minerals, Metals & Materials Society
• Journal of Applied Physics
• Journal of Biomedical Materials Research
• Journal of Electronic Materials
• Journal of Materials Research
• Journal of Materials Science
• Journal of the American Ceramic Society
• Journal of the Electrochemical Society
• Materials Research Society Proceedings Library
• Materials Science and Engineering A
• Materials Science and Engineering. B, Solid-State Materials for Advanced Technology
• Materials Science and Engineering. C, Biomimetic Materials, Sensors and Systems
• Materials Transactions
  TN4.J3
• Mechanics of Materials
• Metallurgical and Materials Transactions. A, Physical metallurgy and materials science
• Metallurgical and Materials Transactions. B, Process Metallurgy and Materials Processing Science
• MRS Bulletin
  TA404.2.M2
• Nano Letters
• Nature
• Nature Materials
• Physica B. Condensed Matter
• Physical Review B. Condensed Matter and Materials Physics
• Physical Review Letters
• Scripta Materialia
• Semiconductor Science and Technology
• Thin Solid Films

Finding Dissertations and Theses

For the most part, only UCB dissertations are available in the UCB Libraries. To find specific UCB dissertations, search Melvyl by Author. To locate sample UCB dissertations from your department, search Melvyl for the Subject berkeley dissertations materials science.

• Dissertations and Theses (Dissertation Abstracts)
  Covers dissertations and theses from U.S. institutions. Provides access to the full-text of University of California dissertations from 1996 forward.
  
  
• WorldCat
  Covers libraries worldwide, including the dissertations they own. If you need a dissertation from another institution, you can request it through the UC-eLinks service using Request.

Keeping Track of Citations

Bibliographic management packages allow you to import citations from online article databases, organize these citations in a personal database, automatically format them within papers, and create instant bibliographies in a variety of styles.

• RefWorks
  Web-based bibliographic management service licensed by The Library for current UCB faculty, staff, and students.
• EndNote
  Desktop bibliographic management software available for purchase from The Scholar's Workstation.

Related Guides:
Bibliographic Management Software
RefWorks Tips for Engineering Databases
EndNote Tips for Engineering Databases

Keeping Current with Research

Many article databases offer services that allow you to create searches that run automatically whenever new records are added. New results are sent directly to your email address, providing a quick and easy way to keep current with research.

Alerting services are offered by the following article databases that cover materials science and engineering topics:

• Engineered Materials Abstracts and Metadex via CSA Alert Service
  Guide: HTML | PDF

• INSPEC via AutoAlerts
  Guide: HTML | PDF

• Web of Science
  Guide: HTML | PDF

Additionally, many publishers and individual journals offer their own alerting services. Please ask a librarian for more information.