Women in Engineering Profile: Ursula Kattner
This profile series introduces leading materials scientists from around the world who happen to be females. Here we speak with Ursula Kattner, physical scientist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology and recipient of the 2016 J. Willard Gibbs Phase Equilibria Award.
What does your typical workday look like?
My typical workday begins with checking email. It is not uncommon that some of the messages require action, so it can take a while to get them answered. There also may be a seminar or meeting that I need to attend, and my favorite part is the discussions with colleagues. The rest of the time I do literature research, data analysis, and writing papers or preparing talks.
What part of your job do you like most?
I am lucky that I am working with wonderful colleagues. These colleagues, just by their stature, are setting high scientific standards. Not everybody gets the opportunity to work with colleagues such as John Cahn or Bill Boettinger. Working with them has had a significant impact on my work and it has been a great deal of fun.
What is your engineering background?
I started out as a mineralogist. To broaden my knowledge, I decided to conduct the research for my diploma (masters) thesis at the Max Planck Institute for Metals Research in Stuttgart, Germany. This work was followed by work on my Ph.D. thesis at the same institute in alloy systems (Al-Ni group). After graduation, I continued to work on alloy systems. My original background in mineralogy gives me the opportunity to look at the challenges faced in my work from a slightly different perspective.
What attracted you to engineering?
I always liked chemistry, mathematics, and physics, so I wanted to do something that involved all three. Materials science and engineering turned out to be perfect for me. The requirements for modern materials are extremely demanding, which then requires in-depth knowledge of a wide range of fields.
What are you working on now?
My areas of expertise are thermodynamics and phase equilibria and their application to materials science and engineering. I use the CALPHAD (calculation of phase diagrams) method to develop thermodynamic databases for alloy systems. In recent years, I have been working on a database for cobalt-base superalloys and developing capture tools and repositories for phase-based data.
If a young person approached you for career advice about pursuing engineering, what would you tell them?
If this is what this person is interested in, yes, by all means. I strongly believe that people will be at their best if they pursue a career that interests them. Also, keep an open mind about similar fields. Although I started in mineralogy, I found that materials science offered a fascinating breadth of interesting, related topics. I also would suggest, especially if the person is not sure, to explore the possibility of an internship at a research facility or in industry. For example, NIST has several internship programs, such as the Summer High School Intern Program (SHIP), among others. These programs give young people the opportunity to experience work in a science and engineering environment and to find out whether this is what they thought it would be.
Hobbies?
Gardening, hiking, needlework.
Last book read?
“Der Untertan” (The Loyal Subject) by Heinrich Mann. I like this book because it gives a simultaneously humorous and sincere insight into German society at the turn of the 19th to 20th century.
Do you know someone who should be featured in an upcoming Women in Engineering profile? Contact Vicki Burt at [email protected].
