[Physics Department] Programmable Soft Materials by Design

Abstract

Soft materials, such as liquids, polymers, and colloids, describe a class of materials subject to thermal fluctuations at room temperature. Due to their "softness," we can continuously program the interactions of soft materials, making them great platforms for the design of material functions. On the other hand, novel inverse-design strategies and frameworks are crucial to tackle the high-dimensional design space. In this talk, I will give an overview of different programmable soft-materials platforms and showcase a few inverse-design strategies I employ to shape materials' function and structure.