Soft Matter: from Theory to Applications

Soft matter includes states of matter that do not fit into the solid-liquid-gas classification but are ubiquitous in daily life (surfactant aggregates, liquid crystals, colloids, microemulsions, foams, gels) and biological structures (membranes, liposomes, proteins, nucleic acids). The course introduces the fundamental laws governing their properties and provides tools to model their self-organization. Additionally, the main characterization techniques will be presented, with an approach that integrates theory, experiments, and computational models. Special attention will be given to applications in fields such as the food industry, pharmaceuticals, and consumer products.

At the end of the course, students will have acquired a solid theoretical understanding of soft matter and the models that describe its behavior, developing a unified framework that enables the investigation of a wide range of materials using common methods and models. They will be able to apply the acquired concepts to interpret and predict material properties, including through computational modeling. Additionally, they will develop both theoretical and experimental skills in the main characterization techniques for soft materials, learning to collect and analyze data to correlate structure and functionality. This integrated approach—combining theory, experiments, and simulations—will provide students with the fundamental tools to understand soft materials and their applications in advanced scientific research and industry.