MSE faculty receive grant for AMPED Consortium

The Advanced Magnetics for Power and Energy Development (AMPED) Consortium has received a planning grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) through its prestigious Industry-University Cooperative Research Centers Program (IUCRC).

The AMPED Consortium aims to address the growing need for improved soft magnetic materials and enhanced device applications that can operate in emerging electric power conversion and energy technologies. The award will be evenly split between Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Pittsburgh, and North Carolina State University. 

“Trends toward electrification are driving the need for improved soft magnetic materials that can operate at unprecedented combinations of switching frequencies and power levels, as well as engineered components which are highly power dense yet extremely efficient,” said Paul Ohodnicki, AMPED director (CMU ‘08). “The major bottleneck in this area is the lack of an available, interdisciplinary workforce with the right combination of skills and a passion to tackle these emerging challenges.”

The NSF IUCRC program funds research centers that generate breakthrough research by enabling sustained engagement between industry innovators, academic teams, and government agencies. The centers are formed around research areas that are strategically important to U.S. industry.

Training students with the required capabilities for these endeavors is critical to the ultimate success of further efforts of electrification for industrial, defense and critical national infrastructure needs.

Mike McHenry, Professor, Materials Science and Engineering

Mike McHenry, professor of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) at CMU, and Vincent Sokalski, MSE associate professor, are faculty leaders of the consortium alongside Co-Director Brandon Grainger and industry liaison Liza Allison at the University of Pittsburgh and Director Subhashish Bhattacharya and Co-Director Richard Beddingfield from North Carolina State University.

“The AMPED Consortium leverages decades of R&D in magnetic materials and devices while engaging industry partners committed to bringing this work to applications and products in power electronics. Training students with the required capabilities for these endeavors is critical to the ultimate success of further efforts of electrification for industrial, defense, and critical national infrastructure needs. The Consortium provides a forum for exchanging important ideas and fostering strategic partnerships in this increasingly visible field.” said McHenry, who has been applying soft magnetic materials to motors, making them smaller, lighter, and more efficient.

In addition to the faculty members, AMPED includes an industry advisory group with members representing key segments and application areas of critical importance to the consortium’s goals.