Speaker:
Prof. Robert Wickham 
Department of Physics, University of Guelph
 
Topics:
Dynamics of Microstructural Transitions in Block Copolymer Melts
 
Time: 13:30 pm, Nov. 02, 2012
Place: Lecture Hall, Science Building
 
Biography of Prof. W. Robert Scheidt: http://www.physics.uoguelph.ca/~rwickham/research/
 
Abstract:
Soft materials are dynamical by nature and the study of the dynamics of soft materials is an exciting, rich area of current interest. During macromolecular self-assembly, as occurs in block copolymers, long structural relaxation timescales due to collective molecular motion are often seen. How microstructure influences the dynamics, the existence and lifetime of metastable states, and the dynamics of long-lived non-equilibrium structures are all poorly-understood issues. I will discuss our dynamical simulations that address these questions in the context of the nucleation of one microstructured phase out of another in a block copolymer melt.