Related papers: Probing temperature-responsivity of microgels and …
Hydrogels are attractive and versatile gel-based structures consisting of three-dimensional networks of hydrophilic polymers with unique properties that can retain a large amount of water and be tailor-designed according to specific…
We investigate the finite-temperature phase diagram of polar molecules confined in a quasi-two-dimensional geometry by a harmonic potential along the polarization axis. We employ Quantum Monte Carlo simulations to explore the strongly…
The study of the formation of molecular hydrogen on low temperature surfaces is of interest both because it allows to explore elementary steps in the heterogeneous catalysis of a simple molecule and because of the applications in…
Block copolymers often create droplets when placed on a substrate. Such nanostructured droplets can be arranged into regular microstructured arrays, thereby forming hierarchically organized materials that can be used in microelectronics,…
A theoretical model for the effect of water hydrogen bonding on the thermodynamics of hydrophobic hydration is proposed as a combination of the classical density functional theory with the recently developed probabilistic approach to water…
Equilibrium properties of hydrogen-helium mixtures under conditions similar to the interior of giant gas planets are studied by means of first principle density functional molecular dynamics simulations. We investigate the molecular and…
We present computer simulations of a realistic model of microgels. Unlike the regular network frameworks usually assumed in the simulation literature, we model and simulate a realistic and efficient synthesis route, mimicking cross-linking…
We demonstrate a novel atom chip trapping system that allows the placement and high-resolution imaging of ultracold atoms within microns from any <100 um-thin, UHV-compatible material, while also allowing sample exchange with minimal…
Molecular beam experiments that use low-temperature bolometers as (energy-) detectors are well suited to the study of physisorption and recombination of hydrogen on low-temperature surfaces. Experiments where this technique is combined with…
Hydrogels are widespread soft materials, which can serve a wide range of applications. The control over the viscoelastic properties of the gel is of paramount importance. Ongoing environmental issues have raised the consumer's concern…
Plasmonic nanoparticles (NPs) integrated within thermoresponsive polymeric microgels provide a versatile platform for the realization of stimuli-responsive optical materials, where the microgel volume phase transition enables dynamic…
Finding new ways to tune the behavior of thermoresponsive microgels in bulk and confined at 2D liquid interfaces is key to achieve a deeper understanding and control of these smart materials. We studied the interaction of positively charged…
Scanning Superconducting QUantum Interference Device (SQUID) microscopy is a powerful tool for imaging local magnetic properties of materials and devices, but it requires a low-vibration cryogenic environment, traditionally achieved by…
We describe an instrument which can be used to analyze complex chemical mixtures at high resolution and high sensitivity. Molecules are collisionally cooled with helium gas at cryogenic temperatures (~ 4-7 K), and subsequently detected…
Hyper-viscoelastic polymers have multiple areas of application including aerospace, biomedicine, and automotive. Their mechanical responses are therefore extremely important to understand, particularly because they exhibit strong rate and…
Long-range intermolecular forces are able to steer polar molecules submerged in superfluid helium nanodroplets into highly polar metastable configurations. We demonstrate that the presence of such special structures can be identified, in a…
We present results of computer simulations of a parahydrogen cluster of a thousand molecules, corresponding to approximately 4 nm in diameter, at temperatures between 1 K and 10 K. Examination of structural properties suggests that the…
The source of high redshift dust is currently under debate. One possibility are the ejecta of pair-instability and core collapse supernovae. However, it is uncertain how much newly formed dust can survive the supernova reverse shock and be…
We use dedicated microfluidic devices to expose soft hydrogel particles to a rapid change in the externally applied osmotic pressure and observe a non-monotonic response: After an initial rapid compression the particle slowly reswells to…
The interparticle interactions in a magnetic nanocomposite play a dominant role in controlling the phase transitions superparamagnetic to superspinglass to superferromagnetic. These interactions can be tuned by controlling the size and…