Soft Interfaces in Physics & Biology: Confinement, Rheology and Transport

Soft Interfaces in Physics & Biology: Confinement, Rheology and Transport
Ian Williams, Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia
Dr. Ian Williams
Date and time: Thu, Feb 27, 2020 - 11:30am
Refreshments at 11:15am
Location: LGRT 1033
Category: Condensed Matter Seminar
Abstract:

Living systems are organised soft materials, and soft matter principles permeate into areas including foods, personal care and medical devices. “Softness” is derived from organisation on a lengthscale between the molecular and macroscopic where thermal energy determines structure and dynamics. Natural and synthetic soft materials typically consist of multiple phases and various surfactants, proteins, polymers, and colloids, which naturally form interfaces. Interfacial characteristics contribute to the function, stability, flow and transport properties of composite materials, and interfaces can compartmentalise, confining materials and modifying their behaviour compared to the bulk. In this seminar, I demonstrate some ways in which two-dimensional and interfacial physico-chemical properties affect bulk behaviour, and how these effects may be controlled to derive function from soft materials. Throughout, I draw inspiration from the biological soft machines provided by nature, and seek to provide insight into how biology exploits soft matter physics. The unifying concepts are that microscopic interactions determine mesoscopic structure, which in turn imparts soft materials with their macroscopic functions; and that, in soft matter, the bulk rarely exists without the interface. Thus, soft matter is a discipline that spans lengthscales and dimensionalities.