MasterNanosciences, nanotechnologies

Fluids near surfaces are important in processes like catalysis, electrochemistry, and energy storage. While much is known about fluids at insulating or semiconducting surfaces, less is understood about their behavior at metallic interfaces, which are crucial for electrokinetics and friction studies. Metallic surfaces have unique electrostatic properties that affect fluid interactions, especially at the nanoscale [1].

This research uses the Virtual Thomas-Fermi (TF) method to model metallic surfaces as charged fluid, allowing us to study how they respond to nearby fluids. The TF method is a fast and efficient alternative to more complex molecular simulation techniques [2]. By applying this approach to Grand Canonical Monte Carlo simulations, we will explore how different dipolar and charged fluids behave at metallic interfaces. The focus is on understanding how metallic properties influence adsorption and fluid dynamics, particularly through the concept of the Gibbs adsorption isotherm which links surface tension and chemical potential.

Bibliography

[1] Comtet, J., Niguès, A., Kaiser, V., Coasne, B., Bocquet, L., & Siria, A. (2017). Nanoscale capillary freezing of ionic liquids confined between metallic interfaces and the role of electronic screening. Nature materials, 16(6), 634-639.
[2] Schlaich, A., Jin, D., Bocquet, L., & Coasne, B. (2022). Electronic screening using a virtual Thomas–Fermi fluid for predicting wetting and phase transitions of ionic liquids at metal surfaces. Nature materials, 21(2), 237-245.

Expected skills

The internship is well appropriated for a student of the M1 Physics of Complex Matter. Programming skills and a background in Statistical Physics, Fundamentals of fluid mechanics and thermodynamics, will be appreciated.