PHYS-350

Soft condensed matter is a rapidly growing area of study, focusing on the behavior of easily deformed materials. Colloids, polymers, surfactants, liquid crystals, gels, foams, and granular materials are all easily deformed by relatively weak external stresses including mechanical forces, electric or magnetic fields, fluid flow and thermal energy. Soft matter materials include biological materials, foods, and silly putty, and often confound, or straddle, conventional classifications of matter. We will investigate the behavior of several types of soft matter, and explore how models that incorporate self-assembly, mesoscopic length scales and coarse graining, viscoelasticity, thermal energy and entropy, and universality help us to understand their complex behavior. Assignments will include problem sets, exams, in-class lab activities and one project/report. Prerequisites: Physics 156 Co-requisite: Mathematics 225.