Surfactant aggregates in solution and at liquid-solid-interface

The versatility of amphiphilic surfactant aggregates and their capacity to change form, structure, and dynamics lie at the heart of many natural and synthetic processes. For example, lipid and detergent micelles, vesicles, and membranes play a key role both in cellular and synthetic molecular transport and regulation. The same molecules form tunable coatings, lubrication layers, and novel nanoscale functional soft materials. Although these aggregates are of very high industrial and academic interest, their characterization remains challenging because of the inherently complex structure and dynamics that involve intricate, collective motion of the components. As a result, basic questions related to the aggregation, structure, aggregate dynamics, and their control remain unanswered. The research is computational and theoretical on systems of soft matter based on amphiphilic surfactants, and systems that combine both soft and crystalline solid matter.