Research

In the Soft Matter Mechanics lab, we study the relationship between structure and behavior of soft materials, which include polymers, biopolymers, hydrogels and biologically active materials such as cells. We particularly focus on the out-of-equilibrium regime, that displays a rich variety of phenomena that rely on interpays between various characteristic and fundamental time scales. For this, we take a multi-scale approach (see figure below) where we decompose a microstructure into its components and analyse the effect of each of these parts on the macroscopic response (elasticity, rheology, adhesion or fracture resistance) of a material. This is achieved via the development of analytical (statistical mechanics & continuum mechanics) and computational approaches (finite element, discrete networks and particle methods), that are integrated with experimental data (see figure below). Results from this work has a wide range of practical applications in the design of smart polymers to be used in medicine, soft robotics and industrial applications, with a focus on the themes highlighted below.