Prof. Ken Schweizer is Looking For a Student in Theoretical Soft Condensed Matter Physics

Professor Ken Schweizer is seeking a physics graduate student with interests in the broad area of statistical mechanical theory of soft materials and condensed matter. His interdisciplinary research group presently consists of graduate students and postdocs from physics, materials science and physical chemistry. Topics of interest include: (1) Slow dynamics and elasticity of glass and gel forming liquids composed of either polymers or colloids; (2) Crystallization and dynamics of dense suspensions of Janus particles; (3) Physical aging and nonlinear mechanical response in nonequilibrium macromolecular glasses; (4) Structure, phase transitions and dynamics of polymer-particle mixtures and networks; (5) First principles approach to topological entanglement dynamics in fluids of synthetic and biological macromolecules; (6) Structure, percolation, viscoelasticity and electrical conductivity of dense mixtures of nanospheres and nanowires. Several of these theoretical projects are carried out in collaboration with experimental colleagues at Illinois or elsewhere.

Professor Schweizer is a faculty member in materials science, physical chemistry, and chemical and biomolecular engineering, and a principal investigator in the Seitz Materials Research Laboratory. All his formal education was in physics, with a PhD from UIUC. If you are interested in discussing possible research opportunities please contact him at kschweiz@illinois.edu.

For more information about Prof. Schweizer and his research, please see his departmental webpage.

Selected Recent Publications
K.Chen, E.J.Saltzman and K.S.Schweizer, Molecular Theories of Segmental Dynamics and Mechanical Response in Deeply Supercooled Polymer Melts and Glasses, Annual Reviews of Condensed Matter Physics, 1, 277 (2010).

R.C.Kramb, R.Zhang, K.S.Schweizer and C.F.Zukoski, Glass Formation and Shear Elasticity in Dense Suspensions of Repulsive Particles, Physical Review Letters, 105, 055702 (2010).

K.Chen and K.S.Schweizer, Theory of Aging, Rejuvenation and the Nonequilibrium Steady State in Deformed Polymer Glasses, Physical Review E, 82, 041804 (2010).

M.Tripathy and K.S.Schweizer, Activated Dynamics in Dense Fluids of Attractive Nonspherical Particles. I. Kinetic Crossover, Dynamic Free Energies, and the Physical Nature of Glasses and Gels, Physical Review E, 83, 041406 (2011).

R.Zhang and K.S.Schweizer, Kinetic Arrest, Dynamical Transitions and Activated Rekaxation in Dense Fluids of Attractive Nonspherical Colloids, Physical Review E-Rapid Communications, 83, 060502(R) (2011).

D.M.Sussman and K.S.Schweizer, Microscopic Theory of the Tube Confinement Potential for Liquids of Topologically Entangled Rigid Macromolecules, Physical Review Letters, 107, 078102 (2011).

U.Yamamoto and K.S.Schweizer, Theory of Nanoparticle Diffusion in Unentangled and Entangled Polymer Melts, Journal of Chemical Physics, 135, 224902 (2011).

S.Y Kim, K.S.Schweizer and C.F.Zukoski, Multiscale Structure, Interfacial Cohesion, Adsorbed Layers and Thermodynamics in Dense Polymer-Particle Mixtures, Physical Review Letters, 107, 225504 (2011).

R.Jadrich and K.S.Schweizer, Percolation, Phase Separation and Gelation in Fluids and Mixtures of Spheres and Rods, Journal of Chemical Physics, 135, 234902 (2011).

D.M.Sussman and K.S.Schweizer, Space-Time Correlated Two-Particle Hopping in Glassy Fluids: Structural Relaxation, Irreversibility and Facilitation, Physical Review E, 85, 061504 (2012).

D.M.Sussman and K.S.Schweizer, Microscopic Theory of Entangled Polymer Melt Dynamics: Flexible Chains as Primitive Path Random Walks and Super Coarse-Grained Needles, Physical Review Letters, in press, 2012.