Maarten de Boer
Professor, Mechanical Engineering
Courtesy Appointment, Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering
Maarten de Boer has been a faculty member at Carnegie Mellon University since 2010. His appointment is in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, and he has a courtesy appointment in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. He was employed as an integrated circuit process engineer at Hewlett-Packard from 1983 to 1991 and as a principal member of technical staff at Sandia National Labs from 1996 to 2010. He earned the Ph.D. degree from the University of Minnesota Chemical Engineering and Materials Science Department in 1996. He is a member of the Materials Research Society since 1992 and of the Society of Experimental Mechanics since 2000.
De Boer has taught courses in mechanical behavior, solid mechanics, materials selection and microelectromechanical systems at the graduate level, and thermodynamics, dynamics, and electronics at the undergraduate level.
De Boer’s group explores the processing and nanomechanical behavior of new materials. Our research activities involve the design, fabrication, testing and characterization of micromachined test platforms. With such platforms, we study in-situ the interplay between processing, environment and properties such as strength, fracture, fatigue, creep, residual stress, adhesion, and friction. Our work is funded by the Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation, NASA and the Army Research Laboratory. De Boer has published over 90 peer-reviewed journal articles with an h-index above 30, and has presented more than 40 invited talks. He is an inventor on seven US patents.
Microscopic & Nanoscopic Devices & Larger Structures
Education
1996 Ph.D., Materials Science and Engineering, University of Minnesota
1982 MS, Electrical Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder
1981 BS, Electrical Engineering, Cornell University
Media mentions
CMU Engineering
Tantalizing tantalum actuators and sensors
Can this refractory metal be an efficient substitute material in microelectromechanical system (MEMS) thermal actuators?
Mechanical Engineering
Driving ahead
From ensuring the supply quality of powertrain plastics to project managing Ford's new electric pickup truck, master's alumna Stephanie Jennings is applying the analytical and problem-solving skills she learned in MechE to her career.
CMU Engineering
A big comeback for a little switch
Maarten de Boer and Gianluca Piazza are developing reliable, mechanical switches the size of a DNA molecule, thanks to a $2M LEAP-HI grant from the National Science Foundation.
Journal of Applied Physics
de Boer's article featured on journal cover
A paper by MechE’s Maarten de Boer was featured on the cover of Journal of Applied Physics. It was also promoted as an Editor’s Pick and will be displayed on the journal’s homepage.
Singh wins fifth preliminary round of 3MT
MechE Ph.D. candidate Prince Singh, advised by Maarten de Boer, was the winner of the CMU Libraries’ Three Minute Thesis (3MT) fifth preliminary round. The internationally recognized competition challenges Ph.D. students to consolidate their research projects, goals, and ideas in a three-minute oral presentation. The final competition will be help on Tuesday, March 26 in Kresge Theater in CFA at 4:30 p.m.
Mechanical Engineering
Exploring high-entropy alloys
Collaborators De Boer, Poczos, and Webler receive a Manufacturing Futures Initiative (MFI) award to explore high-entropy alloys, a new class of metal alloy.
CMU Engineering
A high-tech spin on spider silk
This game-changing technology can transform polymers from soft and thermally insulating materials to an ultra-strong and thermally conductive material.
Mechanical Engineering
Engineering students and Congressman Doyle explore the role of tribology in industry and the economy
This semester, Carnegie Mellon University students had the opportunity to share tribology research projects with United States Representative Mike Doyle as part of the course, Material Selection for Mechanical Engineers.
Mechanical Engineering
From earthquakes to micromachines
Carnegie Mellon University Ph.D. alumnus Sameer Shroff and Professor Maarten de Boer published two companion papers detailing their research on micromachine friction.