You can define materials for your model in Structure or Thermal. If you plan to work with your model in both Structure and Thermal, Creo Simulate assigns the same material for both products. For example, if you assign the material for your Structure model as Aluminum 2014, Creo Simulate assumes Aluminum 2014 for Thermal as well.

However, several of the material properties available in Structure are different from those available in Thermal. For instance, Structure enables you to define such properties as Young's modulus and Poisson's ratio, whereas Thermal enables you to define conductivity and specific heat.

Creo Simulate retains mass density across products. In other words, Creo Simulate assumes that the mass density you define in Structure is the mass density in Thermal, and the reverse.

You can define Poisson's Ratio, Young's Modulus, and Coeff. of Thermal Expansion as a Function of temperature or you can assign a Parameter value to define a property. You can either type a value or right-click on the property text box to define a function or to assign a parameter as appropriate. You can only use Parameter for real number quantities on the Structural and Thermal tabs.

You can use any previously defined system of units as the principal system of units for your model. If you change the units in the Material Definition dialog box, the Changing Parameter Units dialog box appears with the following options: