Professor Gregory Thompson is an appointed Distinguished Research Professor at University of Alabama and the founding Executive Director for the Alabama Materials Institute. Professor Thompson has published nearly 300 peer-reviewed articles in his research areas of analytical microscopy and phase transformations and has graduated 16 M.S. and 29 Ph.D. students to date. He received his Ph.D. (2003) and M.S. (1998) in Materials Science & Engineering from The Ohio State University, and a B.S. (1996) in Physics from Brigham Young University. Between his M.S. and Ph.D., he worked as a processing coating engineer.

He was awarded UA’s Blackmon-Moody Outstanding Professor of the Year in 2014, the TMS Brimacombe medalist in 2017, and became a Fellow of the International Field Emission Society (atom probe tomography) in 2025.

Phase, Microstructure, and Strength Control in TiC Fibers by Thermophoresis Growth Mechanisms

Fibers are critical for strengthening ceramic matrix composites to prevent catastrophic failure, where the development of ultrahigh temperature ceramic fibers would further improve survivability in extreme environments. A novel technique for ceramic carbide fiber synthesis is laser chemical vapor deposition where the solid nucleation occurs from reactions between a metal halide, hydrocarbon, and hydrogen gaseous precursors using the heat from a focused laser. Using thermodynamic processing maps, we show how the ratio of TiCl₄ with C₂H₄ and H₂ affects the diameter and morphology of the fibers where a radial change in composition is facilitated by thermophoresis. Through control of gas composition, laser power, and deposition rate, we report how the developed fiber morphology and microstructure changes from a tube to a core-shell fiber with polycrystalline grains composed of TiC + C to a single crystal of TiC. The fiber microstructure is then connected to the tensile load strength and hardness.

Modernist Materials Synthesis: Finding Thermodynamic Shortcuts with Hyperdimensional Chemistry

A significant challenge in inorganic materials synthesis is to rationally control composition and structure of materials to achieve desired properties. Unfortunately, metastability or glacial reaction kinetics inhibits the search for and synthesis of functional materials.  Yet, solid-state metathesis reactions, which have an expanded, hyperdimensional, compositional space from that of the products, often avoid formation of unreactive intermediates. Furthermore, the nominally spectating elements can even impart selectivity between different products.  Experimental in situ investigation of reactions (e.g., with synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction) paired with computational thermodynamics sheds light on how intermediates in the reaction dictate the local chemical potentials that define the reaction pathway. Selectivity results when intermediates provide direct thermochemical connections between the reactants and a targeted compound, as illustrated for myriad complex manganese oxides.  With this discovery, we now envision an approach for predictive, prescriptive materials synthesis and reversible conversion.

Colloidal Processing: Which is better, Dispersed or Coagulated?

As a graduate student studying colloidal processing in the early 1990s, it was universally accepted that having a fully dispersed suspension for the preparation of slip cast technical ceramics was always the goal. Over the past 15 years, however, this view was challenged on several fronts, now suggesting that coagulated suspensions may be superior to dispersed suspensions for several reasons that range from accelerated slip casting rates to improved densification using advanced sintering ideas such as two-step sintering (affording minimal grain growth). This talk will compare the processing routes of dispersed and coagulated suspensions and discuss the benefits and potential pitfalls of each. (For clarity, coagulation is a result of processing, and not flocculation, which is the starting point for fine ceramic powders, with the sequence flocculated to dispersed to coagulated.)

The Importance of Processing: Microstructural Design in Near-Net-Shaping in UHTCs

The design of thermal protective systems (TPS) for hypersonic vehicles is exceptionally challenging due to the ruthless conditions of atmospheric reentry, like extreme heat fluxes, temperatures and stagnation pressures in highly oxidative environments. TPS must survive those conditions while exhibiting minimal material ablation, low weight and ability to be shaped in multiple, complex geometries. Ultra-High Temperature Ceramics (UHTCs) are part of the equation to solve the problem of material selection to guarantee these components survivability. There has been a remarkable development over the past 20 years for UHTCs, but recent advances in processing and manufacturing have paved the way for exploring new UHTC microstructures that could lead to other heat management strategies.

In this talk, innovative colloidal processing approaches to develop anisotropic microstructures in UHTCs will be discussed, for small and large, complex geometries, including aligned porosity, textured microstructures and high aspect ratio building blocks. This anisotropy could allow the tailoring of the thermomechanical response in different directions within the same component and enable innovative active and passive cooling strategies. This also opens the door to other types of applications beyond hypersonics for these materials. This talk highlights the importance of processing science and engineering to push the envelope in the development of new materials and properties.

High-Throughput Materials Discovery of Complex Nitride Thin Films

Discovery of novel materials is the crucial first step towards addressing technological needs such as computing with improved energy efficiency or reducing the criticality of rare earth magnet materials. Many proposed materials with exceptional calculated properties are compositionally complex and/or thermodynamically metastable, which both present synthetic challenges. I will discuss our approach to these challenges for ternary and quaternary nitrides, which are promising families for applications including piezo- and ferroelectrics, permanent magnets, and detectors. We employ the highly non-equilibrium technique of combinatorial radio-frequency sputtering using reactive nitrogen to rapidly survey these novel phase spaces, in tandem with computation. Combined with spatially-resolved characterization of crystal structure, composition, and properties including magnetic, piezo/ferroelectric, electronic, and optical, this high-throughput experimental approach allows for the development of synthesis-composition-structure-property design rules in these emerging multifunctional materials. These fundamental advances in synthesis and understanding of materials design rules set the stage for future functionalization and optimization of devices.

Nathan Cretegny is a second year PhD student in the Material Science Program, advised by Dr. Eve Mozur. He started his PhD at Colorado School of Mines after receiving a B.S. and M.S. in Material Science and Engineering from Clemson University, where his research focused on protonic ceramic fuel cells. He now works in collaboration with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory researching hybrid materials and inorganic perovskites for various sensing applications. Outside the lab he enjoys hiking, skiing, and cooking.

Brooke Downing is a second year PhD student at Mines in the Materials Science program, advised by Dr. Geoff Brennecka. She graduated in 2019 with a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering at Washington State University. Her current research explores microstructure evolution of piezoelectric ceramics using aerosol deposition and templated grain growth. Outside of work, she enjoys hiking, birding, and skiing.

Victoria Bradford is a Ph.D. student in computational Materials Science, advised by Vladan Stevanovic and Geoff Brennecka. She earned her B.S. in Materials Science & Engineering from the University of Connecticut in May of 2025. As an undergraduate, she worked on multiple projects with the Air Force Research Laboratory, applying computational methods to explore novel materials, and with the DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory on device fabrication projects. She also worked with researchers at the Colorado School of Mines and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory on related computational studies. Her research focused on understanding structure-property relationships and their associated uncertainties in ferroelectric materials. Now, she is investigating interface-dependent structural and electronic behavior using first-principles calculations, ultimately providing guidance for experimental efforts in optimizing electrical contacts for these materials.

Yuchen is a third-year mechanical engineering PhD student at Colorado State University. She is a member of the Advanced Computational Materials Engineering lab, advised by Professor Christopher Weinberger. Her research focuses on the thermodynamics and kinetics of Ultra-High Temperature Carbides. In her (non-existent) free time, she is climbing on rocks or trying new recipes.

Olorunfemi Olaleye (Femi) is a first-year PhD student in the Materials Science Program at Colorado School of Mines, researching kaolin for ethanol steam reforming and gas separation. He holds a B.Tech in Glass and Silicate Technology from Ahmadu Bello University. His undergraduate thesis focused on developing glass-ceramics from waste SLS glasses and alumina.

Krishna is a fourth-year PhD student in the Materials Science program at Colorado School of Mines. Under the supervision of Dr. Anna Staerz, his research focuses on the operando Spectro-electrochemical investigation of high-temperature electrochemical devices. He earned his B.Tech. in Mechanical Engineering from RVR & JC College of Engineering in India. Outside the lab, he enjoys cooking and playing cricket.