Terry Lowe

Dr. Terry Lowe is a research professor in the George S. Ansell Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering. He supports undergraduate and graduate education and research within the department and in two interdisciplinary programs—Materials Science and Quantitative Biosciences and Engineering. 

EDUCATION

• PhD, Materials Science & Engineering/Applied Mechanics. Stanford University, Stanford, CA (1983)
• MS, Materials Science & Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA (1979)
• BS, Materials Science & Engineering/Mechanical Engineering, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA (1978)

RESEARCH AREAS

My research spans three areas: development of nanostructured metals and alloys, biomedical materials development, and computational modeling of deformation processing. Recognized by Thomson-Reuters as one of the Top 100 Materials Scientists of the 21st Century for pioneering the development of metal nanostructuring methods, much of my work today focuses on evolving High Shear Deformation technology to create ultra strong and biocompatible alloys, especially for orthopedic applications. To advance these research frontiers I lead the Transdisciplinary Nanostructured Materials Research Team (TNMRT) which integrates students, postdocs, and full-time staff from the academic departments of Metallurgical & Materials Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Chemical and Biological Engineering, and Physics. The following foundational principles underly the design and daily operation of the research team:

• Convergence between disciplines fuels innovation and discovery.
• Diversity and respect for differences is integral to balance and overall success.
• Teams outperform individuals—we work together to achieve research project goals.

Our science is based on the understanding that sufficiently large shear deformations, which we impose through High Shear Deformation (HSD) processes, cause material rotations that form specific crystallographic textures, non-equilibrium grain boundary structures, and grain sizes refined to below 70 nm. In multiphase alloys, such large shear deformations also cause shear mixing and enhance diffusion, thereby increasing homogeneity and altering the kinetics of phase nucleation, growth, and transformation. Through combinations of computational modeling and iterative cycles of microstructure characterization and material processing, we design non-isothermal intense shear processes to exploit our understanding of these interlinked phenomena. Because of our special interest in biomedical materials, we extend our knowledge of nanoscale microstructures and internal interfaces to study surfaces and environmental interactions with physiological environments at the cellular level.

The horizons we explore, especially in medical material systems, touch on issues in basic biomaterials science, but we also extend our experimental findings to develop larger scale material processing methods to assess the manufacturability and clinical viability of novel nanostructured materials.

The productivity of the team is not left to chance but is instead shaped by deliberate implementation of principles emerging from organizational development and industrial psychology research to maximize team dynamics and individual effectiveness within a diverse environment. Research team members experience mentoring, dyadic pairing to harness interpersonal synergies and aspects of living systems theory. They also experience training and implementation of key business practices such as Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) and formalized project management.

We intentionally work closely with our sponsors to learn from their perspectives and experience. Research projects are often initiated and championed by the highest performing scientists, engineers, and leaders from sponsor organizations. These individuals bring cutting-edge practices from their environments into our midst. These influences and relationships help prepare student team members for their careers.

CURRENT RESEARCH PROJECTS

• Nanostructured thixotropic magnesium alloys for bioabsorbable cardiovascular and orthopedic devices
• Nanostructured of alpha phase titanium alloys to enhance fatigue strength and biocompatibility of dental implants
• Ultrafine grained alpha+beta titanium alloys for trauma fixation
• Microsegregation in medical grade stainless steel alloys
• Modeling of deep drawing of stainless steels
• Nanostructured copper quaternary alloys for extreme hardness
• Nanostructured aluminum alloys to increase electrical conductivity and strength
• Hybrid metamaterials for anti-injury activewear
• Rare earth free Fe-N nano-particle hard magnets
• Assessing and Enhancing Drawability Austenitic and Precipitation Hardened Stainless Steels
• Sheet Surface Oxide Structures and Properties

RECENT COURSES

• Metallurgical & Materials Engineering 472/572 Biomaterials
• Metallurgical & Materials Engineering 202 Engineered Materials
• Metallurgical & Materials Engineering 442 Engineering Alloys

 Publication Highlights

1. Lowe, T. C. and Valiev, R. Z. “Producing Nanoscale Microstructures through Severe Plastic Deformation” Jom-Journal of the Minerals Metals & Materials Society 52, no. 4 (2000): 27–28. doi:10.1007/s11837-000-0127-8
2. Valiev, R. Z., Alexandrov, I. V., Zhu, Y. T., and Lowe, T. C. “Paradox of Strength and Ductility in Metals Processed By Severe Plastic Deformation” Journal of Materials Research 17, no. 01 (2002): 5–8. doi:10.1557/JMR.2002.0002, Available at http://www.journals.cambridge.org/abstract_S0884291400060143
3. Zhu, Y., Lowe, T., Stolyarov, V., and Valiev, R. “Ultrafine-Grained Titanium for Medical Implants” (2000): Available at https://patents.google.com/patent/US6399215B1/en
4. Stolyarov, V. V, Zhu, Y. T., Alexandrov, I. V, Lowe, T. C., and Valiev, R. Z. “Influence of ECAP Routes on the Microstructure and Properties of Pure Ti” Materials Science and Engineering: A 299, no. 1–2 (2001): 59–67. doi:10.1016/S0921-5093(00)01411-8, Available at https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921509300014118
5. Lowe TC and Valiev RZ. “Frontiers for Bulk Nanostructured Metals in Biomedical Applications” Biomaterials and Biodevices (2014): 3–52.
6. Medvedev, A., Ng, H. P., Lapovok, R., Estrin, Y., Lowe, T. C., and Anumalasetty, V. N. “Comparison of Laboratory-Scale and Industrial-Scale Equal Channel Angular Pressing of Commercial Purity Titanium” Materials Letters 145, (2015): 308–311. doi:10.1016/j.matlet.2015.01.051, Available at http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0167577X15000646
7. Kunčická, L., Kocich, R., and Lowe, T. C. “Advances in Metals and Alloys for Joint Replacement” Progress in Materials Science 88, (2017): 232–280. doi:10.1016/j.pmatsci.2017.04.002, Available at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0079642517300361
8. A. E. Medvedev, H.P. Ng, R. Lapovok, Y. Estrin, T.C. Lowe, V. N. A. “Comparison of the Effects of Laboratory-Scale and Industrially Viable Equal Channel Angular Pressing on the Mechanical Properties of Commercial Purity Titanium” Materials Letters (2015):
9. Valiev, R. Z., Semenova, I. P., Jakushina, E., Latysh, V. V, Rack, H., Lowe, T. C., Petruzelka, J., Dulhos, L., Hrusak, D., and Sochova, J. “Nanostructured SPD Processed Titanium for Medical Implants” Nanomaterials by Severe Plastic Deformation Iv, Pts 1 and 2 584–586, (2008): 49–54.
10. Lowe, T. C. and Zhu, Y. T. “Commercialization of Nanostructured Metals Produced by Severe Plastic Deformation Processing” Advanced Engineering Materials 5, no. 5 (2003): 373–378. doi:10.1002/adem.200310076, Available at http://doi.wiley.com/10.1002/adem.200310076
11. Lowe, T. C. “Metals and Alloys Nanostructured by Severe Plastic Deformation: Commercialization Pathways” JOM 58, no. 4 (2006): 28–32. doi:10.1007/s11837-006-0212-8, Available at http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11837-006-0212-8
12. Lowe, T. C., Davis, C. F., Rovira, P. M., Hayne, M. L., Campbell, G. S., Grzenia, J. E., Stock, P. J., Meagher, R. C., and Rack, H. J. “Scientific and Technological Foundations for Scaling Production of Nanostructured Metals” IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 194, no. 1 (2017): 012005. doi:10.1088/1757-899X/194/1/012005, Available at http://stacks.iop.org/1757-899X/194/i=1/a=012005?key=crossref.422594b4d671fc95ed5721da09c50624
13. Raab, G. J., Valiev, R. Z., Lowe, T. C., and Zhu, Y. T. “Continuous Processing of Ultrafine Grained Al by ECAP-Conform” Materials Science and Engineering a-Structural Materials Properties Microstructure and Processing 382, no. 1–2 (2004): 30–34. doi:10.1016/j.msea.2004.04.021
14. Medvedev, A. E., Neumann, A., Ng, H. P., Lapovok, R., Kasper, C., Lowe, T. C., Anumalasetty, V. N., and Estrin, Y. “Combined Effect of Grain Refinement and Surface Modification of Pure Titanium on the Attachment of Mesenchymal Stem Cells and Osteoblast-like SaOS-2 Cells” Materials Science and Engineering: C 71, (2017): 483–497. doi:10.1016/J.MSEC.2016.10.035, Available at https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0928493116318148?via%3Dihub
15. Truong, V. K., Pham, V. T. H., Medvedev, A., Lapovok, R., Estrin, Y., Lowe, T. C., Baulin, V., Boshkovikj, V., Fluke, C. J., Crawford, R. J., and Ivanova, E. P. “Self-Organised Nanoarchitecture of Titanium Surfaces Influences the Attachment of Staphylococcus Aureus and Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Bacteria” Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology 99, no. 16 (2015): 6831–6840. doi:10.1007/s00253-015-6572-7, Available at http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s00253-015-6572-7
16. Medvedev, A. E., Ng, H. P., Lapovok, R., Estrin, Y., Lowe, T. C., and Anumalasetty, V. N. “Effect of Bulk Microstructure of Commercially Pure Titanium on Surface Characteristics and Fatigue Properties after Surface Modification by Sand Blasting and Acid-Etching” Journal of the Mechanical Behavior of Biomedical Materials 57, (2016): doi:10.1016/j.jmbbm.2015.11.035
17. Terry C. Lowe, Rebecca A. Reiss, Patrick Illescas, Melanie Connick, Johnny Sena. “Effects of Nanostructuring on Cytocompatibility of Commercial Purity Titanium” submitted (2019):
18. Reiss, R.A., Lowe, T.C, Sena, J., Connick, M. I. “RNA-Seq Reveals Novel Expression of Non-Coding RNAs and Protein Coding Genes in Pre-Osteoblasts in Response to Nanostructured Titanium” submitted, (2019):
19. Lowe, T. C. and Reiss, R. A. “Understanding the Biological Responses of Nanostructured Metals and Surfaces” IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 63, no. 1 (2014): doi:10.1088/1757-899X/63/1/012172