# AdvancedMaterials

**Source**: https://engineering.rice.edu/research-faculty/research-focus-areas/advanced-materials
**Parent**: https://engineering.rice.edu/

RESEARCH FOCUS AREAS

# **Advanced** Materials

We’re solving for novel materials and fabrication techniques. Advanced materials are critical to sustainable energy, healthcare and manufacturing. Our engineers are developing metamaterials, phase-change materials, and smart fibers and fabrics that contribute to more sustainable and environmentally friendly technologies.

Rice University’s legacy in materials science spans decades, notably with two professors winning the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1996 for discovering “buckyballs,” pivotal in carbon nanotube breakthroughs. Building on this rich legacy, the Rice Advanced Materials Institute fosters collaboration among engineering, chemistry, physics and machine learning to create revolutionary applications in energy systems, biomedical materials, telecommunications, space exploration and more.

## Real World **Impact**

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[Scientists uncover quantum surprise: Matter mediates ultrastrong coupling between light particles](https://news.rice.edu/news/2025/rice-scientists-uncover-quantum-surprise-matter-mediates-ultrastrong-coupling-between)

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[Thermochromic material could make indoor temperature control more energy-efficient](https://news.rice.edu/news/2024/thermochromic-material-could-make-indoor-temperature-control-more-energy-efficient)

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[Rice, DOE labs tackle knowledge gap in materials science research](https://news.rice.edu/news/2024/rice-doe-labs-tackle-knowledge-gap-materials-science-research)

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[Foam fluidics showcase Rice lab’s creative approach to circuit design](https://news.rice.edu/news/2024/foam-fluidics-showcase-rice-labs-creative-approach-circuit-design)

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[New Rice research projects aim to ‘transform’ future of advanced materials](https://news.rice.edu/news/2024/new-rice-research-projects-aim-transform-future-advanced-materials)

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[Electromechanical material doesn’t get ‘clamped’ down](https://news.rice.edu/news/2024/electromechanical-material-doesnt-get-clamped-down)