Soft Matter Interfaces Studied by Scattering Techniques
Jun. Prof. Dr. Markus Mezger (Max Planck Institut für Polymerforschung, Mainz)

Interfacial phenomena in soft matter are at the core of many of today’s technological applications. Complementary high-energy x-ray and neutron scattering techniques can provide information on the structure and dynamics at buried interfaces, scarcely accessible by most conventional experimental methods.
Our experiments include studies on the ion distribution near electrodes in ionic liquid based model capacitors. Using high-energy x-ray reflectivity we get access to deeply buried solid/liquid interfaces and gain structural information on the molecular length scale. Time-resolved reflectivity experiments and complementary electrochemical measurements allow us to study the dynamics at the electrode/IL interface during charging and discharging with sub-millisecond resolution.
In another example, I will discuss interfacial ice melting in clay minerals. These hydrophilic and hydrophobic sheet silicates serve as model systems for permafrost. By high-energy x-ray diffraction and quasielastic neutron scattering we determined the temperature dependence of the quasi-liquid water fraction and its mobility below the bulk melting point.