{"id":21,"date":"2025-10-15T16:59:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-15T20:59:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/1408.mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/?page_id=21"},"modified":"2025-10-15T10:20:37","modified_gmt":"2025-10-15T14:20:37","slug":"research","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/research\/","title":{"rendered":"Research"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Research Overview<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Brenner Research Lab develops advanced materials for extreme environments using atomic simulation, first-principles methods, and multi-scale modeling approaches that bridge atomic to macroscopic scales. Our work integrates theory, computation, and machine learning to reveal fundamental mechanisms of material behavior and accelerate the design of next-generation technologies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Recent research includes:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>High-entropy ceramics for hypersonic applications and super-hard materials<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Nanoparticle-enabled liquid lubricants to reduce friction and wear<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Materials for pressurized water nuclear reactors to limit corrosion and extend fuel lifetimes<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Nano-laminate thermites for energetic applications<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Machine learning and convolutional methods to characterize plastic damage in crystals<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Simulations of sub-surface interfacial damage from shock loading<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"is-text wp-block-ncst-accordion\" >\n    <div class=\"accordion isLinked\" id=\"ncst-accordion-p2p9o4\">\n          \n<details class=\"wp-block-ncst-accordion-item\" name=\"p2p9o4\"  >\n      <summary class=\"accordion-item__header\">\n        <span class=\"accordion-item__expansion-indicator\">\n          <span class=\"ncst-plus-minus-toggle\"><\/span>\n        <\/span>\n        <h2 class=\"accordion-item__label h6\">Our areas of expertise include:<\/h2>\n      <\/summary>\n      <p>\n        \n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Atomistic simulations of materials<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Molecular dynamics and Monte Carlo methods<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Quantum-based modeling of atomic interactions<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Predicting mechanical, electronic, and thermal properties<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Applications in a wide range of material systems<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Metals, ceramics, and polymers<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Carbon-based nanomaterials and composites<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Energy conversion and electronic device materials<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Computational method development<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Brenner potential for carbon systems<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>New interatomic potentials and multiscale modeling tools<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Machine learning approaches for materials discovery<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Core goals<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Reveal fundamental material behavior at the atomic scale<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Design computational methods to guide experiments<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Enable innovation in energy, electronics, and structural materials<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n      <\/p>\n  <\/details>\n\n\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"ncst-split-container wp-block-ncst-split-container\">\n    \n<div class=\"ncst-column wp-block-ncst-column\">\n    \n<div class=\"ncst-labeled-section wp-block-ncst-featured-callout ncst-featured-content\">\n  <div class=\"ncst-labeled-section__background\">\n    <div class=\"ncst-labeled-section__container\">\n               <div class=\"ncst-labeled-section__header\">\n                      <h2 class=\"ncst-labeled-section__heading\">wikipedia resource<\/h2>\n                            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"ncst-labeled-section__content\">\n        \n<a\n    class=\"ncst-content-card wp-block-ncst-content-card with-image with-cta\"\n    href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Donald_W._Brenner\"\n  >\n  \n          <div class=\"content-card__image-container\">\n        <div class=\"content-card__image-background\">\n          <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1435\"\n            class=\"content-card__image wp-image-217\"\n            alt=\"reactive atom\"\n            src=\"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/08\/AdobeStock_958681308-scaled.jpeg\"\n            style=\"aspect-ratio: 16\/9; object-fit: cover; \"\n srcset=\"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/08\/AdobeStock_958681308-scaled.jpeg 2560w, https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/08\/AdobeStock_958681308-600x336.jpeg 600w, https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/08\/AdobeStock_958681308-1200x673.jpeg 1200w, https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/08\/AdobeStock_958681308-768x430.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/08\/AdobeStock_958681308-1536x861.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/08\/AdobeStock_958681308-2048x1148.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px\" \/>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div>\n    \n    <div class=\"content-card__text-container\">\n      \n                        <h3 class=\"content-card__headline\"><strong>Reactive Empirical Bond Order (REBO) Potential<\/strong><\/h3>\n              \n\n              \n\t      \t        <p class=\"content-card__teaser\">Developed by Donald Brenner, the REBO potential is a widely used interatomic model for carbon and hydrocarbon systems. By incorporating bond order, it can realistically simulate bond breaking and formation, making it essential for studying processes like combustion, nanostructure growth, and materials under extreme conditions.<\/p>\n\t      \t    \n              <p class=\"content-card__cta\"><span class=\"text\">Read more<\/span><span class=\"arrow-indicator\"><svg class=\"wolficon wolficon-arrow-right-bold\" role=\"img\"  aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<use xlink:href=\"#wolficon-arrow-right-bold\">\n\t\t<\/svg><\/span><\/p>\n          <\/div>\n\n  <\/a>\n\n\n              <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"ncst-column has-custombg-eight-background-color wp-block-ncst-column\">\n    \n<div class=\"layout-one-column is-text wp-block-ncst-link-list\">\n          <h2 class=\"link-list-section__heading\">\n        Selected Recent Publications\n      <\/h2>\n        <ul class=\"link-list__container\">\n      \n<li class=\"ncst-component__bold-link-container wp-block-ncst-bold-link\">\n      <a \n      href=\"https:\/\/ci.lib.ncsu.edu\/citation\/1412302\"\n      class=\"ncst-component__bold-link text-link\"\n       target=\"_blank\"        rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"     >\n    <span class=\"text\"><em>Interfacial defect properties of high-entropy carbides<\/em> &#8211; <strong>Physical Review Materials (2025)<\/strong><\/span><span class=\"arrow-indicator\"><svg class=\"wolficon wolficon-arrow-right-bold\" role=\"img\"  aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<use xlink:href=\"#wolficon-arrow-right-bold\">\n\t\t<\/svg><\/span>\n    <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n  \n\n<li class=\"ncst-component__bold-link-container wp-block-ncst-bold-link\">\n      <a \n      href=\"https:\/\/ci.lib.ncsu.edu\/citation\/1170481\"\n      class=\"ncst-component__bold-link text-link\"\n       target=\"_blank\"        rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"     >\n    <span class=\"text\"><em>A super-hard high entropy boride containing Hf, Mo, Ti, V &amp; W<\/em> &#8211; <strong>Journal of the American Ceramic Society (2024)<\/strong><\/span><span class=\"arrow-indicator\"><svg class=\"wolficon wolficon-arrow-right-bold\" role=\"img\"  aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<use xlink:href=\"#wolficon-arrow-right-bold\">\n\t\t<\/svg><\/span>\n    <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n  \n\n<li class=\"ncst-component__bold-link-container wp-block-ncst-bold-link\">\n      <a \n      href=\"https:\/\/ci.lib.ncsu.edu\/citation\/1177556\"\n      class=\"ncst-component__bold-link text-link\"\n       target=\"_blank\"        rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"     >\n    <span class=\"text\"><em>Disordered enthalpy-entropy descriptor for high-entropy ceramics discovery<\/em> &#8211; <strong>Nature (2024)<\/strong><\/span><span class=\"arrow-indicator\"><svg class=\"wolficon wolficon-arrow-right-bold\" role=\"img\"  aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<use xlink:href=\"#wolficon-arrow-right-bold\">\n\t\t<\/svg><\/span>\n    <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n  \n\n<li class=\"ncst-component__bold-link-container wp-block-ncst-bold-link\">\n      <a \n      href=\"https:\/\/ci.lib.ncsu.edu\/citation\/1218267\"\n      class=\"ncst-component__bold-link text-link\"\n       target=\"_blank\"        rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"     >\n    <span class=\"text\"><em>Machine learned interatomic potentials for ternary carbides<\/em> &#8211; <strong>npj Computational Materials (2024)<\/strong><\/span><span class=\"arrow-indicator\"><svg class=\"wolficon wolficon-arrow-right-bold\" role=\"img\"  aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<use xlink:href=\"#wolficon-arrow-right-bold\">\n\t\t<\/svg><\/span>\n    <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n  \n\n<li class=\"ncst-component__bold-link-container wp-block-ncst-bold-link\">\n      <a \n      href=\"https:\/\/ci.lib.ncsu.edu\/citation\/868862\"\n      class=\"ncst-component__bold-link text-link\"\n       target=\"_blank\"        rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"     >\n    <span class=\"text\"><em>High-entropy ceramics: Propelling applications through disorder<\/em> &#8211; <strong>MRS Bulletin (2022)<\/strong><\/span><span class=\"arrow-indicator\"><svg class=\"wolficon wolficon-arrow-right-bold\" role=\"img\"  aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<use xlink:href=\"#wolficon-arrow-right-bold\">\n\t\t<\/svg><\/span>\n    <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n  \n\n    <\/ul>\n  <\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Research Overview The Brenner Research Lab develops advanced materials for extreme environments using atomic simulation, first-principles methods, and multi-scale modeling approaches that bridge atomic to macroscopic scales. Our work integrates theory, computation, and machine learning to reveal fundamental mechanisms of material behavior and accelerate the design of next-generation technologies. Recent research includes:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"views\/homepage.blade.php","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"source":"","ncst_custom_author":"","ncst_show_custom_author":false,"ncst_dynamicHeaderBlockName":"ncst\/split-header","ncst_dynamicHeaderData":"{\"backgroundColor\":\"custombg_ten\",\"imageID\":160,\"imageURL\":\"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/08\/atoms-scaled.jpeg\",\"pageIntro\":\"Computational Materials Science and Atomistic Modeling\",\"useCTA\":false,\"boxPosition\":\"left\",\"ctaNum\":\"one\",\"imageAlt\":\"\",\"focalPoint\":{\"x\":0.95,\"y\":0.17}}","ncst_content_audit_freq":"","ncst_content_audit_date":"","ncst_content_audit_display":false,"ncst_backToTopFlag":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-21","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/21","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/21\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":255,"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/21\/revisions\/255"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}