Dynamic liquid colloids: Lukas Zeininger receives funding from the DFG to establish an Emmy Noether Research Group

The German Research Foundation (DFG) funds a new Emmy Noether junior research group within the Colloid Chemistry department at the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces in Potsdam. The independent junior research group is headed by Lukas Zeininger and will develop new active soft materials for chemical and biological sensing applications. For the next six years, the junior research group will receive funding of around 1,7 million euros.

January 14, 2020

The young research team is headed by Lukas Zeininger and will focus on the production, properties, and applications of dynamic liquid colloids – a new type of multicomponent, i.e. ‘complex’" emulsion. The aim of the research will be the development of novel synthetic strategies and the investigation of the underlying physico-chemical properties with the goal to enable the development of new ‘smart’ soft materials with artificial, bio-inspired functions for a wide range of applications. The areas of application range from biomimetics, the production of optical and electrical metamaterials to new chemical and biological sensor applications.

In addition to the production of functional dynamic liquid colloids, the goal of the chemists will be to develop a deep understanding of the processes at the interface and the interactions between soft materials and liquid colloids to gain fundamental insights into the behavior of active soft matter. New surface-active agents based upon innovative molecular and polymeric designs will enable the development of new integrated systems with tailored properties and functionalities for new and improved emulsion technologies that offer solutions to real-world challenges. For instance, new sensor paradigms for the sensitive and reliable detection of pathogenic organisms are developed in order to minimize the risks of food poisoning.

“Our mission is the development of artificially intelligent emulsion systems and transformational device concepts that address real-world challenges. The resources from the Emmy Noether program will enable us to gain a comprehensive, multifaceted and in-depth understanding of the basic chemical and physical properties of dynamic liquid colloids, and to create new innovative materials with artificial bio-inspired functions for new and improved emulsion technologies” says Lukas Zeininger, group leader of the Emmy Noether junior research group.

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