Unit DYNAMIC PROCESSES IN FLUIDS
- Course
- Chemical sciences
- Study-unit Code
- A001539
- Curriculum
- Chimica fisica
- Teacher
- Marco Paolantoni
- Teachers
-
- Marco Paolantoni
- Hours
- 47 ore - Marco Paolantoni
- CFU
- 6
- Course Regulation
- Coorte 2026
- Offered
- 2026/27
- Learning activities
- Caratterizzante
- Area
- Inorganico-chimico fisico
- Sector
- CHEM-02/A
- Type of study-unit
- Obbligatorio (Required)
- Type of learning activities
- Attività formativa monodisciplinare
- Language of instruction
- Italian
- Contents
- Principles of optics and spectroscopic applications. Properties of soft matter, dynamic processes, and spectroscopic techniques for their investigation, with practical examples.
- Reference texts
- Fondamenti di fisica - David Halliday e Robert Resnick
Chimica Fisica - Peter William Atkins, Julio De Paula, James Keeler
Scattering di Luce Dinamico – con applicazioni in Chimica, Biologia Fisica- B.B. Berne, R. Pecora
Fisica della Materia Soffice - Masao Doi - Educational objectives
- The main objective of the course is to provide students with the fundamental knowledge required to understand the properties of soft matter and its investigation through spectroscopic techniques.
The main knowledge acquired will include:
-fundamentals of optics;
-fundamentals of the physical chemistry of soft matter;
-basic knowledge of the molecular dynamics of condensed-phase systems;
-basic knowledge of selected spectroscopic techniques for the study of soft matter.
The main skills acquired (i.e., the ability to apply the knowledge gained) will include:
rationalizing the behavior of the systems under investigation on the basis of their molecular properties;
interpreting spectroscopic data related to the study of soft matter;
interpreting the laws, models, and equations introduced to describe the physicochemical phenomena considered. - Prerequisites
- Fundamentals of Physics and Molecular Spectroscopy
- Teaching methods
- Lectures and laboratory sessions.
- Other information
- Attendance: recommended.
- Learning verification modality
- The exam consists of an oral test and a report on a laboratory experience. The oral test consists of a discussion aimed at assessing the level of knowledge and understanding achieved by the student regarding the topics covered. It will also make it possible to evaluate the ability to correctly apply theoretical knowledge and to communicate what has been learned using appropriate language, independently organizing the presentation of the topics. The laboratory report will assess the student’s ability to process and present the results related to the conducted experiment. The final grade will be calculated as the average of the marks obtained in the two assessments. The duration of the exam varies depending on its progress.
- Extended program
- - Electromagnetic radiation: Maxwell’s equations and correction of Ampère’s law. Generation and propagation of electromagnetic waves. Energy transport and intensity of electromagnetic waves. Electromagnetic spectrum. Propagation of light in vacuum and in matter. Reflection and refraction of light. Total internal reflection (ATR).
- Polarization of electromagnetic waves. Polarization by reflection. Birefringence. Linear, circular, and elliptical polarization. Optical activity and circular dichroism.
- Mirrors and lenses. Image formation, geometrical optics and wave optics. Basic concepts of plane and spherical mirrors. Thin lenses (applications, common optical instruments).
- Interference and Young’s experiment. Spatial and temporal coherence. Interference from thin films.
- Diffraction and wave theory. Diffraction through a circular aperture. Spatial optical resolution.
- FT-IR and ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. Principles of infrared spectroscopy. Michelson interferometer. Continuous and discrete Fourier transform. Advantages of FT-IR.
- Dispersive instrumentation: dispersive Raman spectroscopy. Laser operating principles. Diffraction gratings. Dispersion and resolving power.
- General characteristics of soft matter: intermolecular interactions, structural organization, dynamics, order parameter and phase transitions, polydispersity.
- Techniques for studying soft matter: microscopy, light scattering, X-ray and neutron scattering, rheology, calorimetry, other spectroscopic methods.
- Time scales of some relevant chemical processes. Time autocorrelation functions and fluctuations.
- Theoretical and applied aspects of different spectroscopic techniques: IR, Raman, Dynamic Light Scattering. Depolarized light scattering, Brillouin scattering.