Soft Matter I

(4 Credits)

Advanced-level course on the principles and applications of soft matter physics. Emphasis on the underlying physical concepts and principles. Topics include interactions in soft mater systems (Van der Waals, aqueous electrostatics, depletion etc), polymers (flexibility and statistics, coils and globules, phase transitions, solutions, melts, networks, polyelectrolytes and polyampholytes), polymer dynamics (diffusion, reptation, viscoelasticity), biolopolymers (DNA electrostatics, melting, protein folding).