The Wolfson Department of Chemical Engineering

We use radio-frequency acoustic waves to vibrate and distort ion systems that naturally accumulate near surfaces and govern their electrical properties: The nanometer thick electrical double layer of ions. The electrical double layer is fundamental across countless natural and artificial systems. Its contributions to the electrical properties of surfaces dictate countless soft matter effects, from the folding structures of proteins and the rate of adsorption of molecules and particles to surfaces to governing the electrical properties and hence operation of biological and artificial membranes. By using acoustic waves to introduce electrokinetic effects in electrical double layers, we study their inner structure and dynamically alter their electrical properties. Candidates for both experimental and theoretical work are sought in all technical disciplines of soft matter, physics, and engineering. A basic numerical capability is expected.