Robert E. Newnham

Alcoa Professor Emeritus, Solid State Science

251-A MRL Bldg.

Penn State University

University Park, PA 16802

Phone: (814) 865-1612

FAX: (814) 865-7593

E-mail: Robert E. Newnham

Education:

• Ph.D., Cambridge University, U.K. (Crystallography)
• Ph.D., Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania (Physics and Mineralogy)
• M.S., Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado (Physics)
• B.S., Hartwick College, Oneanta, New York (Mathematics)

Research Interests:

• Crystal chemistry and structure-property relationships
• Crystal physics
• Electroceramics
• Primary and secondary ferroic phenomena
• Piezoelectric, pyroelectric and electrostrictive phenomena
• Composite materials for transducers, sensors, and actuators
• Integrated electroceramic packaging, nanocomposite materials

Now mostly retired, Bob Newnham had a sixty year career in the crystallography, crystal physics, and crystal chemistry of oxides. As a student, he studied structure-property relations of quartz, clay, and feldspars, and during his eight years at M.I.T., he worked on the optical properties of laser crystals and discovered a large family of magnetoelectric materials with the olivine structure. His long collaboration with Eric Cross at Penn State began in 1966, and over the years, they built up the largest ferroelectrics research program in the United States, working mainly on barium titanate, lead zirconate titanate, and related perovskites. Much of the work was sponsored by the capacitor industry through the Center for Dielectric Studies and by the Office of Naval Research for the development of new sonar systems. Bob’s main contribution was a large family of composite transducers made from ceramics, polymers, and metals, based on a number of different connectivity patterns. He wrote hundreds of research papers and more than 20 important patents on these devices. Bob was an excellent teacher and many of his students became leaders in the field of ferroelectrics.

Technologies Impacted by Research:

Bob Newnham’s transducer designs are used by all the major manufacturers of biomedical phased arrays, including Philips, GE, Hitachi, Siemens, and a number of smaller companies, as well. Several of these companies are located near State College. Materials Systems, Inc., and Input-Output, Inc., are two of the sonar manufacturers who have utilized his ideas for Navy systems and for off-shore oil exploration. Beginning thirty years ago, many of Bob’s students took part in collaborative studies sponsored by electronic companies in Asia and Europe. They have gone on to establish long-term friendships with our ferroelectric friends all over the world.

Professional Experience:

Awards:

Selected Publications:

1. “Structure-Property Relations”, Springer Verlag, 1975.
2. “Tailoring Multiphase and Composite Ceramics”, Plenum Press, 1986.
3. “Classic Crystals”, Penn State Press, 1987.
4. “Piezoelectricity”, American Institute of Physics, 1992
5. “Properties of Materials: Anisotropy, Symmetry, Structure”, Oxford University Press, 2005. Plus 550 research articles