Machine Learning Unlocks Secrets to Advanced Alloys

An MIT team uses computer models to measure atomic patterns in metals, essential for designing custom materials for use in aerospace, biomedicine, electronics, and more.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA

The concept of short-range order (SRO) - the arrangement of atoms over small distances - in metallic alloys has been underexplored in materials science and engineering. But the past decade has seen renewed interest in quantifying it, since decoding SRO is a crucial step toward developing tailored high-performing alloys, such as stronger or heat-resistant materials.

Understanding how atoms arrange themselves is no easy task and must be verified using intensive lab experiments or computer simulations based on imperfect models. These hurdles have made it difficult to fully explore SRO in metallic alloys.