Soft materials are characterized by their complex microstructure and phase behavior. Materials as diverse as liquid crystals, biological membranes and polymer networks share these characteristics play an important role in everyday technologies, biological systems and nanoscience.
In our lab we focus on developing and investigating new soft materials inspired by nano-science and biology. Biological molecules self-assemble to form complex functional structures and have many physical and chemical relationships with synthetic molecules found in liquid crystal devices, colloidal materials and polymers. With a background in soft matter physics it is natural to apply similar experimental and theoretical approaches to biological systems and our group’s work encompasses a wide variety of synthetic and biological assemblies.
Current projects ongoing in the lab:
Liquid crystals and liquid crystal nano-composites
Topological defects and interfacial curvature
Lipid membranes and intracellular transport
As part of our research program we collaborate with several groups on campus and around the world, you can learn more about their research programs by clicking below.
- Sayantani Ghosh, Dept of Physics, UC Merced
- Jason Hein, Dept of Chemistry, UC Merced
- Jing Xu, Dept of Physics, UC Merced
- Jay Sharping, Dept of Physics, UC Merced
- Ajay Gopinathan, Dept of Physics, UC Merced
- Timothy Atherton, Dept of Physics, Tufts University
- Robin Selinger, Liquid Crystal Institute, Kent State University