Workshop of the International Research Training Group "Soft Condensed Matter Physics of Model Systems"

Soft condensed matter has emerged in the last decades as a field that encompasses all materials that are soft meaning that thermal fluctuations are noticeable in these systems. Examples are colloidal dispersions, liquid crystals, polymers, membranes, etc. These systems have a huge impact on our everyday life. On the other hand, a variety of experimental and theoretical methods had to be developed for characterizing and understanding their properties. Especially, light is a fascinating and important probe to monitor the structure of and dynamic processes in soft materials. Furthermore, strong localization of light was demonstrated recently in highly densified colloidal dispersions.

The goal of this workshop is to give an overview of recent developments in soft condensed matter and in related biological systems but also to reveal how light especially in the multiple scattering regime interacts with soft materials.