In this project you will study the molecular-scale structure and dynamics of water and polymer networks of biological and supramolecular hydrogels, using femtosecond two-dimensional infrared spectroscopy and polarization-resolved femtosecond infrared spectroscopy.
Hydrogels form a special class of form-stable, elastic materials that consist of a (polymer) network and a large amount of water. In this project you will use advanced nonlinear spectroscopic techniques to study biological hydrogels and supramolecular hydrogels. Biological hydrogels have a network formed by protein-polysaccharide chains, and typically contain 90-99% water. These hydrogels are ubiquitous in nature and perform important biological functions. Supramolecular hydrogels contain relatively small molecular components that reversibly assemble via hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions into fibrils or bundels. Supramolecular hydrogels can already be...