Soft Matter Physics

Soft matter physics is the study of materials that are 'easily deformable, e.g. by thermal fluctuations or small shear forces. Fluids, gels and biological tissues are important examples. In this course, we study the properties of such materials with a special focus on applications in biophysics and biomaterials. Topics include macroscopic and microscopic fluid dynamics, elasticity, viscoelastic materials, polymers, mixtures, and membranes. For all of these we will build models, using the tools of statistical physics, and apply these models to biological examples, such as DNA (polymers), various tissues (viscoelastic materials), liquid-liquid phase separation, and membrane shapes and interactions. We will introduce the relevant mathematical framework where needed, using ideas from tensor calculus, differential equations and differential geometry. At the end of the course, students read and present a recent research paper on a soft matter topic, connecting what they've learned to ongoing developments.