The areas of study in engineering mechanics are computational mechanics, mechanics of materials and structural mechanics and structural dynamics. A brief description of each area and its experimental facilities is given below.

Computational Mechanics

This area involves study and research in the development and application of numerical and computational methods for the solution of a wide range of problems in solid mechanics, fluid mechanics, and materials science. Students will gain experience with developing models of physical systems, formulating the discretized equations for the model systems of partial differential equations, and implementing these equations in computer codes for their solution and analysis. Computing facilities include workstations, supercomputers, and networks of workstations.

Mechanics of Materials and Structural Mechanics

These areas involve theoretical, numerical and experimental research in the mechanics of composite materials, smart/active materials, thin films, fracture mechanics, micromechanics of materials, constitutive equations, mechanical behavior at high-strain-rates, structural analysis, and structural stability. Experimental facilities include equipment for static structural testing; digital data acquisition equipment; uniaxial and biaxial materials-testing machines; custom loading devices; environmental chambers; microscopes; photomechanics facilities, composites processing equipment, facilities for microstructural analysis, and high-speed imaging and high-strain-rate mechanical testing facilities. Computing facilities include workstations, supercomputers, and networks of workstations.

Structural Dynamics

This area involves study and research in theoretical, computational, and experimental structural dynamics. Included are aeroelasticity, linear and nonlinear structural system identification, structural acoustics, and computational techniques for very large scale vibration analysis. Computational facilities include numerous computer servers and workstations, and experimental facilities include actuators and sensors and several data-acquisition systems for structural system identification and control. Wind tunnel facilities are available for testing aeroelastic models.