CBE & MSE Seminar: Probing Soft Matter Structure and Assembly with Cryogenic and Liquid Phase Electron Microscopy

Abstract: The evolution of soft matter in solution is a key step in the formation of complex biological and synthetic materials. In many systems, including macromolecules and colloids, a delicate interplay exists between the kinetic and thermodynamic parameters which govern their behavior. In this talk, we discuss how liquid phase electron microscopy and time-resolved cryo-electron microscopy can be used to obtain direct nanoscale observations of macromolecular and colloidal assembly processes. These direct observations offer a unique insight into both kinetic and thermodynamic pathways during self-assembly, allowing the development of new models and providing new design opportunities to control structure and function.

Bio: Patterson obtained his undergraduate degree in chemistry from the University of York, UK, and conducted his master's research project with Cytec Engineered Materials at the Wilton Centre. He completed his Ph.D. in radical polymer chemistry and self-assembly at the University of Warwick, UK, in 2013, working under the supervision of Professor Rachel O’Reilly. He went on to work for Professors Nathan C. Gianneschi and Kimberly Prather at UC San Diego, and the Center for Aerosol Impacts on Climate and Environment (CAICE) as a postdoctoral scholar. In 2016 he joined the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands, working in the Laboratory of Materials and Interface Chemistry led by Professor Nico Sommerdijk. In July 2018, Patterson joined the Department of Chemistry at UC Irvine. His interests involve the development of new materials through a deep understanding of their structure and dynamics. For his work in this area, he has been awarded several prizes including the Domino/MacroGroupUK Young Polymer Scientist of the Year in 2011, the 2013 Jon Weaver Ph.D. prize and a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual fellowship in 2017.

Host: Timothy Rupert