Materials and Advanced Manufacturing

A Sandia physicist loads sample coatings into holders to test in Sandia’s Z machine. Sandia material scientist watches as a 3D-printed part is scanned A Sandia technologist prints material on the Laser Engineered Net Shaping machine

Fundamental research in materials science provides the solid technical basis needed for Sandia’s engineering decisions and future mission work. This research includes innovative and hypothesis-driven science efforts that combine theory, computation, and experiments that lead to new insights, advance the frontier-of-knowledge, and foster new initiatives and collaborations.  

Advanced manufacturing is leveraged in cutting-edge industries and is certainly used across Sandia where we employ software and modeling & simulation to produce new materials and design components. Our experts in additive manufacturing, advanced/composite materials, robotics/automation, laser machining/welding, and nanotechnology create new technologies and help mature existing advanced science and engineering solutions for target applications.  

Why Our Work Matters 

Sandia’s research advances, sustains, supports, and nurtures the materials science and advanced manufacturing capabilities that are needed to enable science-based materials solutions for enduring and emerging missions and national needs. Our focus is on: 

  • Predicting performance and reliability of materials and devices over extended time periods and demanding environments to satisfy obligations for each of Sandia’s mission responsibilities. 
  • Understanding how to control energy, mass, and charge transfer for enhanced functions, efficiencies, and properties of materials for crosscutting needs in energy, reliability & aging, and energetic materials. 
  • Developing new materials, with a particular focus on next generation materials to support our mission as a national security laboratory. 
  • Synthesizing and processing computational materials to understand the physical principles and putative paradigms that govern growth and synthesis. 
  • Creating novel characterization and diagnostic tools & techniques for future materials applications.  

Our Unique Value 

Our researchers explore pathways that involve experimental and theoretical inquiries that lead to scientific discoveries that advance DOE missions in energy, environment, and national security. Sandia has deep foundational knowledge in electronic and optical materials, thin films and coatings, nanostructured materials, ceramics synthesis and processing, and catalysis and reaction processes. We also have proven expertise in developing and applying innovative characterization and diagnostic techniques, as well as advanced computational methods. 

Collaboration across Sandia’s science and engineering communities in our world-class equipment and facilities capitalize on overall strengths such as high-performance computing, microsystems, chemical imaging, and modeling and simulation. 

Recent Highlights

Understanding how materials will interact with their environment is crucial when selecting components for engineering applications....

Brittle material failure can appear random and unpredictable at subcritical stresses. A fundamental understanding of how...

As counterfeiting methods become more sophisticated, countermeasures must be developed at the same pace. In this...

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Materials and Advanced Manufacturing Related Research Facilities

AMPL provides extensive expertise in the areas of manufacturing research and development, as well as advanced engineering and prototyping capabilities.

AML focuses on ceramics, porous materials, catalysts, electronic materials, materials synthesis, and advanced manufacturing research.

The CRF responds to the nation’s evolving energy challenges with ever increasing expertise and capacity aimed at improving our nation’s ability to use and control combustion processes.

CSRI brings university faculty and students to Sandia for focused collaborative research on Department of Energy computer and computational science problems.

DETL is a multipurpose research facility designed to integrate emerging energy technologies into new and existing electricity infrastructure to accommodate the nation’s increasing demands for clean, secure, and reliable energy.

IMRL integrates research from atomic scale to full scale components, investigates organic materials, advanced alloys, electronic and photonic semiconductors, high temperature superconductors, ceramics, quantum systems, and laser, optical and dielectric...

MSE provides knowledge of materials structure, properties, and performance and the processes to produce, transform, and analyze materials.

The Mechanical Shock Complex provides tailored impact environments, such as shock and crush. The complex simulates dynamic environments such as weapon delivery, severe accident, and pyroshock.

The Mechanical Test and Evaluation Facility conducts experimental research and develops diagnostics to study the mechanical behavioral of materials.

MESA integrates scientific disciplines to produce functional, robust, integrated microsystems. Today researchers pursue advanced concepts that integrate not only electronics at the micro scale, but embody sensors, photonics, and MEMS...

Operated by Sandia for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the National Solar Thermal Test Facility (NSTTF) is the only large-scale concentrating solar power (CSP) and solar thermal test facility...

QSCOUT is a quantum computing testbed based on trapped ions that is available to the research community as an open platform for a range of quantum computing applications.

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Related Intellectual Property

Featured Licensing Opportunities

Manufacturing & Assurance • Rigid Polyurethane Foam Absorbs Energy, Worker Safe, and Environment Friendly TufFoam is a toluene diisocyanate (TDI)-free, CFC-free water-blown, closed-cell, rigid polyurethane foam available in densities from 2 to 40 pounds...

Chemistry, Materials & Coatings; Manufacturing & Assurance • By addressing thermal expansion mismatch, this innovative molecular system can enhance polymer durability for a wide range of applications. Business Problem Polymers are lightweight, cost-effective, easily molded, and have good...

Assurance; Chemistry, Materials & Coatings; Manufacturing & • This award-winning software enables accurate simulations of complex material deformation for a wide range of applications. Business Problem Simulation engineers and manufacturers in automotive, aerospace, electronics, and other industries rely...

Manufacturing & Assurance • An additive manufacturing method using new resin chemistries and dual wavelength photocuring to rapidly create high-resolution parts with improved strength and durability This technique of vat-based 3D printing for robust...

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Patents
Patents & Applications
415 Results
Patent Title Patent Number Grant Date
Use of latent metathesis polymerization systems for additive manufacturing 11,840,586 12/12/2023
Structural metamaterials comprising interpenetrating lattices Pending 11/28/2023
Use of latent metathesis polymerization systems for photopolymerization-based additive manufacturing 11,820,839 11/21/2023
Method for Attaching Nanomaterials Comprising Hexagonal Lattices to Polymer Surfaces 11,566,088 01/31/2023
Poly(phenylene) with High Ion Selectivity for Use in Anion Exchange Membranes 11,549,011 01/10/2023
COMPUTATIONALLY OPTIMIZED AND MANUFACTURED ACOUSTIC METAMATERIALS 11,498,282 11/15/2022
Electrocatalyst comprising a crumpled transition metal dichalcogenide support loaded with monodispersed metal nanoparticles 11,484,867 11/01/2022
PASSIVE TUBE CLOSURE VALVE 11,473,689 10/18/2022
High Entropy Alloys, Refractory High Entropy Alloys, Methods of Selecting and Making, and Structures Formed Thereof 11,434,551 09/06/2022
Superconductivity device comprising a phononic crystal 11,424,400 08/23/2022
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Current Materials and Advanced Manufacturing Openings

Current Materials and Advanced Manufacturing Openings

Albuquerque, NM 46
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