Dr. Andrea L. Del Vecchio

My research focuses on two different, but related areas. My first area of interest is in the stresses that develop during the growth of thin films. These stresses cause damage to thin film devices such as sensors and computer chips. In my research, I look at the effect of deposition conditions on the stresses in thin films and relate this to the underlying mechanisms that cause these stresses.
My second area of research is in examining the structure, kinetics and mechanical properties of colloidal crystals and glasses. Colloidal crystals are made from very small beads suspended in a liquid, which crystallize in a very similar way to metallic crystals. The advantage of colloidal crystals is that they can be viewed under an optical microscope, allowing real time imaging of processes that are difficult and extremely costly to examine in metals. I am interested in the phenomena such as the formation of grain boundaries, grain growth and the mechanical properties of these crystals.