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We present a novel experimental setup to investigate two-dimensional thermal convection in a freestanding thin liquid film. We develop a setup for the reproducible generation of freestanding thin liquid films. Such films can be produced in…
Dynamics of thin films of poly(vinyl acetate) (PVAc) and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) have been investigated by dielectric relaxation spectroscopy in the frequency range from 0.1Hz to 1MHz at temperatures from 263K to 423K. The…
The near threshold "soft breakdown" measurements of PVC films conductivity are investigated. In a wide range of external electric field strength for various rather thick (>20 mkm) PVC films the resistance shows strong nonlinearity and seems…
We experimentally study the pairwise interactions between poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (pNIPAM) microgel particles using line optical tweezers. To measure their interaction potentials under controlled conditions, we trap two microgel…
Surface tension-driven flow techniques have recently emerged as an efficient means of shedding light into the rheology of thin polymer films. Motivated by experimental and theoretical approaches in films bearing a varying surface…
Investigations of free-standing liquid films enjoy an increasing popularity due to their relevance for many fundamental and applied scientific problems. They constitute soap bubbles and foams, serve as membranes for gas transport or as…
Despite their technological relevance, a full microscopic understanding of glasses is still lacking. This applies even more to their surfaces whose properties largely differ from that of the bulk material. Here, we experimentally…
We measure the isothermal rejuvenation of stable glass films of poly(styrene) and poly(methylmethacrylate). We demonstrate that the propagation of the front responsible for the transformation to a supercooled-liquid state can serve as a…
We present an investigation of the effect of the interaction between a thin polystyrene film and its supporting substrate on its glass transition temperature (Tg). We modulate this interaction by depositing the film on end-tethered…
A reversible thermotropic phase transition in an adsorption melissic acid film at the interface between n-hexane and an aqueous solution of potassium hydroxide (pH=10) is investigated by X-ray reflectometry and diffuse scattering using…
This work reports a systematic study of the evolution of charge transport mechanism in granular ultra-thin films of palladium of thickness varying between 6nm and 2nm. While the films with thickness > 4nm exhibit metallic behaviour, that at…
Nanocomposite films containing a high volume fraction (> 50vol%) of nanoparticles (NPs) in a polymer matrix are promising for their functionality and use as structural coatings, and also provide a unique platform to understand polymer…
We probe the temperature dependence of friction at the interface between a glassy poly(methylmethacrylate) lens and a flat substrate coated with a methyl-terminated self-assembled monolayer. The monolayer exhibits density defects which act…
The electrical resistivity of conventional metals, such as copper, is known to increase in thin films due to electron-surface scattering, limiting the performance of metals in nanoscale electronics. Here, we find an unusual reduction of…
The instability, dynamics and morphological transitions of patterns in thin liquid films on periodic striped surfaces (consisting of alternating less and more wettable stripes) are investigated based on 3-D nonlinear simulations that…
Observations are reported in isothermal torsional oscillation tests on melts of isotactic polypropylene (iPP) and low-density polyethylene (LDPE) in the intervals of temperature between 190 and 250C (iPP) and between 120 and 190C (LDPE).…
The ability to control porosity in oxide thin films is one of the key factors that determine their properties. Despite the abundance of dry processes for the synthesis of oxide porous layers, the high porosity range is typically achieved by…
Microstructurally arrested matter, from molecular glasses to soft glassy materials, can retain a memory of their thermal or mechanical (shear) histories. Their history-dependent and nonlinear microstructural recoveries have been studied…
We report on a combined structural and electronic analysis of niobium ultrathin films (from 2 to 10 nm) deposited in ultra-high vacuum on atomically flat R-plane sapphire wafers. A textured polycrystalline morphology is observed for the…
We apply the superconducting proximity effect in TiN/Ti multi-layer films to tune the critical temperature, Tc, to within 10 mK with high uniformity (less than 15 mK spread) across a 75 mm wafer. Reproducible Tc's are obtained from 0.8 -…