Science of Extreme and Multifunctional Materials

Collection of images showing different aspects of materials science

Science of Extreme and Multifunctional Materials

Our team utilizes advanced chemistry, materials science, and computational tools across a variety of areas, including hypersonics, deployable manufacturing, space applications, warfighter protection, expeditionary technologies, clean water, AI-enabled materials discovery, and advanced coatings.

Program Manager: Morgan Trexler
Assistant Program Manager: Leslie Hamilton

Focus Areas

Hypersonics →

Creating new materials with extreme survivability, evaluating performance in relevant environments, and linking materials to operational improvements

Learn more about Hypersonics

Deployable Manufacturing

Inventing new alloys, understanding new formation mechanisms, creating unique structures, and enabling new capabilities on demand

Space Applications

Creating new materials and manufacturing processes to enable new space-based missions

Warfighter Protection

Inventing new materials to enable protection of deployed forces and understanding protection mechanisms

Expeditionary Technologies

Developing materials with novel capabilities and field-forward utility for warfighters on the battlefield and at sea

Clean Water →

Enabling clean water, on demand, everywhere

Learn more about Clean Water

AI-Enabled Materials Discovery →

Revolutionizing materials discovery by employing artificial intelligence, paired with high-throughput synthesis and characterization

Learn more about AI-Enabled Materials Discovery

Advanced Coatings

Developing coatings with integrated, novel capabilities for the warfighter, the planet, and beyond

Featured Work

Revolutionizing Materials Discovery for National Security

APL is reimagining and accelerating the targeted discovery of materials tailored to withstand and perform in the most demanding conditions, ensuring enhanced capabilities in extreme environments.

Learn more about Revolutionizing Materials Discovery for National Security

James Johnson and Danielle Nachman in APL’s PFAS research laboratory.

Eliminating Forever Chemicals

Multiple studies have linked PFAS exposure to harmful health effects in humans and animals, and without a natural way to break them down, the chemicals persist in soil and contaminate the environment — including water. APL scientists are developing several technologies to capture and destroy these “forever chemicals.”

Learn more about Eliminating Forever Chemicals

Advancing Materials for Thermal Management

More than half the energy consumed in the American residential industry is spent on heating and cooling homes. Researchers at APL have made a significant breakthrough in the development of advanced materials technology that can efficiently manage thermal conditions, particularly in buildings and data centers.

Learn more about Advancing Materials for Thermal Management

Researchers cut and assembled tiny solar cells on thin, flexible circuit boards before sealing them in a protective polymer to create a fiber-like strand that was woven with nylon into a small textile.

Developing Battery- and Solar-Powered Fibers

APL researchers have established new, scalable methods of developing battery- and solar-powered fibers, making it theoretically possible for electrical energy to be harvested from, and stored in, the clothing people wear.

Learn more about Developing Battery- and Solar-Powered Fibers

Creating Coatings for Extreme Environments

The leading edges of hypersonics vehicles—as well as fins, control surfaces, and apertures—need to be protected against speeds exceeding Mach 5, temperatures well above 1,000 degrees Celsius, oxidation from the atmosphere, and tremendous aerodynamic shear loads. Custom materials can enable mission success in these extreme environments.

Learn more about Creating Coatings for Extreme Environments

Watch

A team of researchers at Johns Hopkins APL is using artificial intelligence to revolutionize materials discovery.

A multidisciplinary team at APL has discovered a novel superconductor using artificial intelligence. The key to this breakthrough came through combining materials science expertise and real data into a predictive AI model, which vastly accelerates the timeline of targeted materials discovery.

Eliminating Forever Chemicals from the World’s Water

SXSW 2024

PFAS are widely used, long-lasting chemicals that have caused widespread contamination in our air, water, and land. Compounds in PFAS are so strong that they don’t degrade naturally and linger in the environment, earning them the label “forever chemicals.” Studies have shown that PFAS exposure may be linked to harmful effects in humans and animals. In a panel at SXSW 2024, APL’s Leslie Hamilton and the EPA’s Mohamed Ateia Ibrahim discussed how government, academia, and industry are working together to overcome PFAS-related challenges by developing new technologies, approaches, and policies to detect, destroy, and ultimately replace these chemicals.

Featured Publications

An APL materials scientist works with an arc melter

Our research is published in a number of peer-reviewed journals and in conference proceedings.

Impact

Next-Generation Materials →

APL is dedicated to advancing next-generation materials for critical national security applications, such as hypersonic flight, space-based missions, and naval ship construction.

Learn more about Next-Generation Materials

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