(42 Lectures + 14 Tutorial)

1. Introduction: Basic phenomenology of soft condensed matter systems, intermolecular forces, viscoelasticity, ordering in softmatter, glass transition, phase separation
2. Diffusion processes:  Fick’s laws, Diffusion Equation, Random walks, Brownian motion, Langevin and Fokker-Plank equations
3. Colloids: Stability of colloidal systems, Poisson-Boltzmann theory, DLVO theory, Depletion interactions, Electro-kinetic effects
4. Polymers: model systems and chain statistics, polymers in solvents and melts, viscoelasticity, gelation
5. Liquid crystals: Introduction, liquid crystal phases and transitions, Distorted nematic ordering, response to electric and magnetic fields
6. Amphiphiles: Introduction, microphase separation in block copolymers and in solutions of amphiphiles, aggregation and self-assembly of amphiphiles