Scientists at the MPIE
Dr. Poulumi Dey works as a postdoctoral fellow in the group “Computational Phase Studies” in the department “Computational Materials Design”. Her main research interests are in the fields of theoretical condensed matter with a special focus on unconventional superconductors, ab initio determination of phase composition and ab initio based design of materials resistant to hydrogen embrittlement. At the MPIE she works on the ab initio prediction of the composition of κ carbides in FeMnAlC alloys. These steels containing κ precipitates, are especially interesting for many industrial applications as they combine high strength, ductility and corrosion resistance. Additionally, Dey investigates ways to resist hydrogen embrittlement which limits the applicability of high strength steels. In this regard, κ carbides are found to be potential hydrogen traps in Al containing high Mn steels. The interplay of hydrogen and microstructure in Ni-based superalloys is also being investigated thoroughly.
Dey got her PhD in physics in 2011 from the Indian Institute of Technology in Guwahati, India. Her thesis was about the “Disorder and spin balance induced exotic phases in weakly coupled s-wave superconductors”.
Dr. Zhiming Li works as a postdoctoral fellow in the group “Adaptive Structural Materials” in the department “Microstructure Physics and Alloy Design”. His research focusses on multi-principal element alloys; on the microstructure, properties and processing of bulk metallic materials & on metallic and ceramic coatings. His latest publication is about high-entropy alloys which combine high ductility and strength and consist of similar quantities of five or more different metals. The high-entropy alloy investigated by Li and his colleagues shows a metastable dual-phase structure with a substantial work-hardening ability. After these results were published in Nature (see below), Li is going to further tune the composition and microstructure to make the alloy even more applicable for industrial use.
Before his research stay at the MPIE, he did his PhD at the Shanghai Jiao Tong University in Shanghai, China, and was a visiting scholar for one year at the University of California in Davis, USA.