Soft matter: Micro-Structuring and Self-Organization || Microsystem Technology

In this course, we will cover the following topics:

• Fundamentals of Soft Materials and Polymer Physics:
  • Physics of Soft Matter.
  • Polymer Microstructure, Configuration, Network Structure, Soft Gel, IPN, Semi IPN, Glass Transition
  • Phase Transitions and Phase Separation, Percolation and Gelation
  • Entropy Elasticity, Energy Elasticity, Gogh Jule Effect
  • Characterization techniques of soft matter: DMA, Stress-strain, Modulus, Creep, Relaxation
  • Reversible Network, and Self-healing materials
  • Wrinkle patterns, Soft Materials for Actuators, Sensors, Energy Harvesting 
• Liquid Crystals
• Colloids
• Interfaces: Membranes, liquid vs. solid membranes, energy and elasticity, surface tension, curvature, de Gennes-Taupin length, shape transitions.
• Amphiphiles: Microphase separation in block copolymers and solutions of amphiphiles. Aggregation and micellization of small molecules and surfactants in solution.
• Methods of Processing Soft Matter
• Methods of Micro- and Nanostructuring by Lithography: E-beam lithography, laser lithography, micro-deformation in capillaries, etc.