Investigations of the dynamics of morphological transitions in amphiphilic systems

The study of the dynamics of morphological transitions in amphiphilic systems is an increasingly active field of colloid research, studying either surfactants or amphiphilic block copolymers. Due to increased experimental time resolution a more detailed picture of the structural changes involved is emerging. Recently, particular emphasis has been given to the study of formation and breakdown of bilayer systems (vesicles)—especially with respect to the related process of membrane fusion. Another field of high interest are investigations of the mechanism of amphiphile assisted template reactions for the formation of new nano-structured materials. In addition, processes of solubilisation and micelle formation have been studied yielding a more detailed understanding of these fundamentally important processes.