Program overview
Materials Physics and Chemistry, simply put, is about studying 'why materials have these properties' and 'how to create better materials.' You'll take core courses like solid-state physics, quantum mechanics, materials thermodynamics, and materials characterization techniques, and get hands-on experience with advanced equipment like scanning electron microscopes and X-ray diffractometers. This major suits students who enjoy hands-on experiments and are curious about the microstructure of matter—if you were decent at physics and chemistry in high school and are willing to spend time in the lab analyzing data, it'll be a great fit. Many Chinese universities have unique strengths in this field, such as Tsinghua's electron microscopy, Beihang's high-temperature alloys, and USTC's new energy materials. Labs are well-equipped with up-to-date instruments, and research topics closely follow industry needs.