Edinburgh Soft Matter and Statistical Physics Programme Grant Renewal
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Edinburgh
Department Name: Sch of Physics and Astronomy
Abstract
The term 'soft matter' describes a group of materials that are assembled from components whose size scale is of order microns or nanometers -- much bigger than a typical molecule or atom. Examples include polymers (very long flexible molecules), colloids (small hard spheres), emulsions (droplets of one fluid in another), foams (gas bubbles in a fluid), detergent molecules (with a water-loving head and a water-hating tail -- these clump together into complex shapes), powders (small dry grains), and many analagous systems of biological origin. Familiar examples are respectively engine oil, paint, mayonnaise, shaving cream, shampoo, and talc; the biological analogues include mucus, slime moulds, saliva, and various components of the living cell.In many cases, the system's behaviour is controlled not by the chemical details of its components, but by their physical interactions, which are generic to each class of material. The softness of these materials, compared to (say) a piece of metal, arises from the fact that these interactions are generically weaker than those between atoms. This makes it easy to bend and shape the materials, and to subject them to extremes of flow (causing disruption to the structure) that cannot easily be achieved with metals or other forms of 'hard' condensed matter. The weakness of the interactions means that there is a lot of random motion (the motion we call heat) even at room temperature; the properties of soft materials are often closer to those found by maximising the entropy (randomness) of the system than to those found by minimizing its energy. Under these conditions, one must use the tools of 'statistical mechanics' to understand how the microscopic interactions, combined with entropy, come to determine the properties of the material.The Edinburgh Soft Matter and Statistical Physics Group has developed experimental and theoretical techniques for understanding how the ingredients of a soft material come to determine its properties -- particularly those properties related to how the material flows (the science of 'rheology'). Our work focusses on making detailed studies of a small number of model systems, each representative of a larger class: by understanding these in depth, we hope to find general principles that might not be obvious by collating more superficial results for a wider range of samples. We wish to continue our integrated programme in experiment and theory, to address new topics in soft condensed matter, increasingly those at the interface with biology. The five main projects are:1. Rheophysics -- to understand the behaviour of colloids and other soft materials under conditions of strong flow. Often, flow can totally alter the internal structure of such materials and we want to understand this.2. Physics of barriers in soft matter and biology -- to understand how soft and biological systems undergo 'rare events' taking them from one apparently stable state of organization to another. These include events that alter the way genes are expressed in a cell, and also the nucleation of one phase of matter within another.3. New soft materials -- building on our recent discoveries, we want to use physics to create new and interesting materials with properties potentially relevant to computer displays, drug delivery, catalysis and other fields.4. Physics of cellular motion -- we want to understand how bacteria (which, if they were dead, would be effectively colloids) behave when swimming, either individually, or collectively (in a swarm). At a smaller scale, within the cell there are various soft matter components which use a constant supply of chemical energy to maintain an 'active' (i.e. living) state. We want to understand these too.5. New statistical mechanics tools -- we want to develop new and better theories and simulation models that will, over the longer term, help us connect the microscopic components in soft materials to their macroscopic properties.
Organisations
Publications
Tavacoli J
(2011)
Novel, Robust, and Versatile Bijels of Nitromethane, Ethanediol, and Colloidal Silica: Capsules, Sub-Ten-Micrometer Domains, and Mechanical Properties
in Advanced Functional Materials
Besseling R
(2009)
Quantitative imaging of colloidal flows
in Advances in Colloid and Interface Science
Tiribocchi A
(2010)
Switching and defect dynamics in multistable liquid crystal devices
in Applied Physics Letters
Micheletti C
(2008)
Simulations of knotting in confined circular DNA.
in Biophysical journal
Martinez VA
(2012)
Differential dynamic microscopy: a high-throughput method for characterizing the motility of microorganisms.
in Biophysical journal
Croze OA
(2011)
Migration of chemotactic bacteria in soft agar: role of gel concentration.
in Biophysical journal
Kiselev VY
(2011)
Lateral dynamics of proteins with polybasic domain on anionic membranes: a dynamic Monte-Carlo study.
in Biophysical journal
Visco P
(2010)
Switching and growth for microbial populations in catastrophic responsive environments.
in Biophysical journal
Ackland G
(2011)
The MOLDY short-range molecular dynamics package
in Computer Physics Communications
Henrich O
(2010)
Domain growth in cholesteric blue phases: Hybrid lattice Boltzmann simulations
in Computers & Mathematics with Applications
Pagaling E
(2017)
Assembly of microbial communities in replicate nutrient-cycling model ecosystems follows divergent trajectories, leading to alternate stable states
in Environmental Microbiology
Latka A
(2009)
Particle dynamics in colloidal suspensions above and below the glass-liquid re-entrance transition
in EPL (Europhysics Letters)
Henle M
(2008)
The effect of curvature and topology on membrane hydrodynamics
in EPL (Europhysics Letters)
Barrett-Freeman C
(2010)
The role of noise and advection in absorbing state phase transitions
in EPL (Europhysics Letters)
Alexander G
(2008)
Cubic blue phases in electric fields
in EPL (Europhysics Letters)
Wilson L
(2011)
Microrheology and the fluctuation theorem in dense colloids
in EPL (Europhysics Letters)
Schwarz-Linek J
(2010)
Polymer-induced phase separation in suspensions of bacteria
in EPL (Europhysics Letters)
Tailleur J
(2009)
Sedimentation, trapping, and rectification of dilute bacteria
in EPL (Europhysics Letters)
Chattopadhyay A
(2010)
Income and poverty in a developing economy
in EPL (Europhysics Letters)
Gordon V
(2008)
Adhesion promotes phase separation in mixed-lipid membranes
in EPL (Europhysics Letters)
Tuinier R
(2008)
Phase diagram for a mixture of colloids and polymers with equal size
in EPL (Europhysics Letters)
White KA
(2011)
Inversion of particle-stabilized emulsions of partially miscible liquids by mild drying of modified silica particles.
in Journal of colloid and interface science
Lintuvuori J
(2010)
Colloids in liquid crystals: a lattice Boltzmann study
in Journal of Materials Chemistry
Marenduzzo D
(2008)
Lattice Boltzmann simulations of spontaneous flow in active liquid crystals: The role of boundary conditions
in Journal of Non-Newtonian Fluid Mechanics
Evans M
(2011)
Diffusion with optimal resetting
in Journal of Physics A: Mathematical and Theoretical
Mitchell L
(2010)
Hawkes process as a model of social interactions: a view on video dynamics
in Journal of Physics A: Mathematical and Theoretical
Popkov V
(2008)
Spontaneous symmetry breaking in a bridge model fed by junctions
in Journal of Physics A: Mathematical and Theoretical
Clegg PS
(2008)
Fluid-bicontinuous gels stabilized by interfacial colloids: low and high molecular weight fluids.
in Journal of physics. Condensed matter : an Institute of Physics journal
Valeriani C
(2011)
Crystallization and aging in hard-sphere glasses.
in Journal of physics. Condensed matter : an Institute of Physics journal
Marenduzzo D
(2010)
Biopolymer organization upon confinement.
in Journal of physics. Condensed matter : an Institute of Physics journal
Thijssen JH
(2010)
Emulsification in binary liquids containing colloidal particles: a structure-factor analysis.
in Journal of physics. Condensed matter : an Institute of Physics journal
White K
(2008)
Influence of particle composition and thermal cycling on bijel formation
in Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter
Conrad J
(2010)
Arrested fluid-fluid phase separation in depletion systems: Implications of the characteristic length on gel formation and rheology
in Journal of Rheology
Fuchs M
(2009)
A mode coupling theory for Brownian particles in homogeneous steady shear flow
in Journal of Rheology
Pham K
(2008)
Yielding behavior of repulsion- and attraction-dominated colloidal glasses
in Journal of Rheology
El Masri D
(2009)
Dynamic light scattering measurements in the activated regime of dense colloidal hard spheres
in Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment
Thompson A
(2011)
Lattice models of nonequilibrium bacterial dynamics
in Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment
Evans M
(2008)
Condensation and extreme value statistics
in Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment
Costa A
(2010)
Discontinuous transition in a boundary driven contact process
in Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment
Marenduzzo D
(2009)
Phase diagrams for DNA denaturation under stretching forces
in Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment
Gross M
(2011)
Langevin theory of fluctuations in the discrete Boltzmann equation
in Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment
Thompson A
(2010)
Zero-range processes with saturated condensation: the steady state and dynamics
in Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment
Marenduzzo D
(2009)
Topological and entropic repulsion in biopolymers
in Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment
Evans M
(2009)
Matrix Representation of the Stationary Measure for the Multispecies TASEP
in Journal of Statistical Physics
Channon KJ
(2009)
Efficient energy transfer within self-assembling peptide fibers: a route to light-harvesting nanomaterials.
in Journal of the American Chemical Society
Zhang Z
(2011)
Synthesis and directed self-assembly of patterned anisometric polymeric particles.
in Journal of the American Chemical Society
Channon KJ
(2008)
Modification of fluorophore photophysics through peptide-driven self-assembly.
in Journal of the American Chemical Society
Reissig L
(2010)
Three-dimensional structure and growth of myelins.
in Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids
Kim E
(2008)
Arrest of fluid demixing by nanoparticles: a computer simulation study.
in Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids
Kim E
(2010)
Bijels containing magnetic particles: a simulation study.
in Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids
Description | I will not attempt to summarize the findings which were reported in 142 separate scientific papers. Highlights included a new theory of pattern formation in bacterial colonies; a new understanding of how dense colloidal suspensions get jammed when flowing down pipes; a new understanding of the self-assembly of protein fragments (relevant to prion disease); and a new understanding of the plastic flow of glasses. |
Exploitation Route | The research outcomes of this grant are being exploited by our new partner organization, Edinburgh Complex Fluids Partnership, who actively seek industrial partners with whom to exploit the research. They have a client list of around 25 companies and live collaborations with about ten of these. |
Sectors | Agriculture, Food and Drink,Chemicals,Healthcare,Pharmaceuticals and Medical Biotechnology |
Description | The research has allowed us to set up a new in-house tech-transfer organization called Edinburgh Complex Fluids Partnership (ECFP). This new organization with two full-time staff has active contacts with about 25 companies ranging from multinationals to SMEs and is pursuing direct collaborative research with about ten of these. For example, the work on dense colloids has led to collaborative projects with Johnson Matthey, Syngenta and Mars Chocolate. |
First Year Of Impact | 2013 |
Sector | Agriculture, Food and Drink,Chemicals,Healthcare |
Impact Types | Economic |
Description | BBSRC Grouped |
Amount | £262,463 (GBP) |
Funding ID | BB/I006133/1 |
Organisation | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 01/2011 |
End | 12/2013 |
Description | BBSRC Grouped |
Amount | £262,463 (GBP) |
Funding ID | BB/I006133/1 |
Organisation | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 01/2011 |
End | 12/2013 |
Description | EPSRC |
Amount | £491,766 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/I034661/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 04/2012 |
End | 04/2015 |
Description | EPSRC |
Amount | £174,452 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/I030298/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 10/2011 |
End | 09/2013 |
Description | EPSRC |
Amount | £5,039,693 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/J007404/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 12/2011 |
End | 05/2017 |
Description | European Commission (EC) |
Amount | £186,800 (GBP) |
Funding ID | PIIF-GA-2010_276190 |
Organisation | European Commission |
Sector | Public |
Country | European Union (EU) |
Start | 03/2011 |
End | 03/2013 |
Description | Mars UK Ltd |
Amount | £417,510 (GBP) |
Funding ID | Poon |
Organisation | Mars Incorporated UK |
Sector | Private |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 09/2012 |
End | 08/2015 |
Description | Royal Society of Edinburgh, The |
Amount | £224,415 (GBP) |
Funding ID | Thijssen BP Trust Personal Research Fellowship |
Organisation | Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 09/2010 |
End | 08/2014 |
Description | Royal Society of London |
Amount | £97,248 (GBP) |
Funding ID | 4899 |
Organisation | The Royal Society |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 05/2011 |
End | 05/2013 |
Description | Syngenta |
Amount | £91,665 (GBP) |
Funding ID | Industrial CASE voucher 11440214 |
Organisation | Syngenta International AG |
Sector | Private |
Country | Switzerland |
Start | 09/2011 |
End | 03/2015 |
Description | Syngenta |
Amount | £91,665 (GBP) |
Funding ID | Industrial CASE voucher 11440214 |
Organisation | Syngenta International AG |
Sector | Private |
Country | Switzerland |
Start | 09/2011 |
End | 03/2015 |