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Colloidal model systems allow for a flexible tuning of particle sizes, particle spacings and mutual interactions at constant temperature. Colloidal suspensions typically crystallize as soon as the interactions get sufficiently strong and…
The fragility of a glassforming liquid characterizes how rapidly its relaxation dynamics slow down with cooling. The viscosity of strong liquids follows an Arrhenius law with a temperature-independent barrier height to rearrangements…
There are three kinds of solid states of matter that can exist in physical space: quasicrystalline (quasiperiodic), crystalline (periodic) and amorphous (aperiodic). Herein, we consider the degree of orientational order that develops upon…
We show that atoms or molecules subject to fields that couple their internal and translational (momentum) states may undergo a crossover from randomization (diffusion) to strong localization (sharpening) of their momentum distribution. The…
Molecular fluids show rich and complicated dynamics close to the glass transition. Some of these observations are related to the fact that translational and orientational degrees of freedom couple in nontrivial ways. A model system which…
Collective motion over increasing length scales is a signature of the vitrification process of liquids. We demonstrate the emergence of distinct static and dynamic length scales probed near the free surface in fully equilibrated…
We present a systematic study of the topology of the vortex solid phase in superconducting Bi$_{2}$Sr$_{2}$CaCu$_{2}$O$_{8}$ samples with low doses of columnar defects. A new state of vortex matter imposed by the presence of geometrical…
We derive a mode-coupling theory for the slow dynamics of fluids confined in disordered porous media represented by spherical particles randomly placed in space. Its equations display the usual nonlinear structure met in this theoretical…
Liquid crystal elastomers are rubber-like solids with liquid crystalline mesogens (stiff, rod-like molecules) incorporated either into the main chain or as a side chain of the polymer. These solids display a range of unusual…
Crucial to gaining control over crystallisation in multicomponent materials or accurately modelling rheological behaviour of magma flows is to understand the mechanisms by which crystal nuclei form. The microscopic nature of such nuclei,…
Instability patterns of rolling up a sleeve appear more intricate than the ones of walking over a rug on floor, both characterized as uniaxially compressed soft-film/stiff-substrate systems. This can be explained by curvature effects. To…
Rapid cooling of liquids below a certain temperature range can result in a transition to glassy states. The traditional understanding of glasses includes their thermodynamic metastability with respect to crystals. However, here we present…
In this thesis the formation and properties of a polymer gel on and at a surface are investigated. The gel under investigation is defined as a three-dimensional network of "phantom" macromolecules that form permanent links with one another…
The exploration of large-scale many-body phenomena in quantum materials has produced many important experimental discoveries, including novel states of entanglement, topology and quantum order as found for example in quantum spin ices,…
We report experimental evidence of a Gardner-like transition from variable to persistent force contacts in a two-dimensional, bidisperse granular crystal by analyzing the variability of both particle positions and force networks formed…
When an amorphous solid is deformed cyclically, it may reach a steady state in which the paths of constituent particles trace out closed loops that repeat in each driving cycle. A remarkable variant has been noticed in simulations where the…
Forced granular matter in confined geometries presents phase transitions and coexistence. Depending on the system and forcing parameters, liquid-vapor and liquid-solid co-existing states are possible. For the solid-liquid coexistence that…
Tuning cell rearrangements is essential in collective cell movement that underlies cancer progression, wound repair, and embryonic development. A key question is how tissue material properties and morphology emerge from cellular factors…
Studies of random organization models of monodisperse spherical particles have shown that a hyperuniform state is achievable when the system goes through an absorbing phase transition to a critical state. Here we investigate to what extent…
In our daily lives, after shaking a salad dressing, we see the coarsening of oil droplets suspended in vinegar. Such a demixing process is observed everywhere in nature and also of technological importance. For a case of high droplet…