Dr. Dirk Aarts

Biography

Dirk Aarts is a professor in the Department of Chemistry at Oxford University, specializing in soft condensed matter. His research primarily focuses on the dynamics and behavior of colloidal particles, particularly at the phase and interface levels. His main experimental technique is optical microscopy, which includes confocal and fluorescence microscopy as well as simple video-microscopy using homemade and commercial microscopes. Aarts typically combines microfluidics with optical tweezers to study colloidal suspensions, which have been of significant interest to scientists due to their ubiquitous nature and numerous industrial applications. The versatile nature of colloids also allows them to serve as models for atoms and molecules, showcasing rich phase behaviors analogous to atomic and molecular systems. The techniques available in advanced colloid chemistry enable researchers to tune the chemical and physical properties of particles, leading to the development of unique colloidal model systems. For more information, please visit his research pages.

Research Interests