Physics of Complex and Disordered Matter (SoftMat)

Fluids are all around us at all times and on all scales. Understanding fluid mechanics means understanding the mechanics of our surroundings, particularly air and water. As such, hydrodynamics is part of a physicist's basic knowledge.

Hydrodynamics is an introduction to the mechanics of incompressible perfect fluids (Euler) and viscous Newtonian fluids (Navier-Stokes). Classical flows are presented, as well as the concepts of boundary layer, instability, and turbulence. The emphasis is placed more on physical ideas than on advanced mathematical or numerical solution methods.

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English tutorial course for students enrolled in the Master 1 Physics program who wish to become proficient in scientific English.

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This course is part of the foundation of modern physics. It provides a foundation of knowledge that is essential for all physics courses, as it lays the groundwork for the theoretical description of the interaction between the electromagnetic field and elementary quantum elements such as two-level systems, atoms, and molecules. It also provides the necessary knowledge for understanding LASERs, modern optical devices, and spectroscopic methods and analyses.

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The aim of this module is to enable students to compare experimental reality with their theoretical knowledge. Particular attention is paid to writing up results and presenting them in the form of oral presentations. The work is organized into eight-hour sessions for which a topic is chosen by the students. They record their results and analyses in a laboratory notebook based on the protocols used in laboratories. At the end of the semester, students choose a topic, which they develop in the form of a final report that they defend orally. This course prepares students for the internships they will undertake during their studies.

Examples of experiments available: optical spectroscopy (IR, visible), gamma, X-ray, acoustic; low-temperature photoluminescence; near-field spectroscopy (AFM, STM); electron microscopy...

The range of experiments on offer covers the areas of physics taught in the various physics courses. Students must choose from among the different experiments those that seem most relevant to their interests. A significant effort has been made to integrate new data acquisition technologies and the use of computer tools in order to compare experiment and theory.

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Through two specific examples (X-ray diffraction and vibrations), this module shows in detail how the physical properties of a solid are modeled. The formalism will also be applied to finite systems, such as nanoparticles, and will remain valid for amorphous materials, but particular attention will be paid to periodic systems (from linear chains to protein crystals, graphene, and silicon). Associated with this periodicity, the notion of reciprocal lattices will naturally arise.

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The course aims to provide a general introduction to cellular and molecular biology and to contextualize the use of modern physics, through its quantitative methods and approaches, to describe biological systems and their complexity from the molecular to the cellular and tissue levels.

Another fundamental topic covered is the quantification of phenomena, their physical interpretation, and their physical-mathematical modeling. The course introduces students to philosophy and the range of topics covered in this master's program, which focuses on the study of the physical principles of the organization and dynamics of living and complex matter.

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This course includes an upgrade and deepening of programming techniques as well as an introduction to computational physics. We will begin with a review of procedural programming using the Python 3 language. We will then take an in-depth look at numerical methods relevant to physics, studying a selection of classic algorithms from numerical analysis and applying them to physical problems.

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Introduction to advanced statistical physics: grand canonical ensemble; quantum statistics; quantum fluids (Bose-Einstein condensation, thermal radiation; Sommerfeld theory); phase transitions; Ising model; mean field theory; dynamics of complex systems.

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Conducting a research project in an academic or industrial laboratory.

Dates: May-June

Duration: 7 weeks minimum, extendable in July

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The mechanical and thermal properties of materials are central to many applications in the field of energy materials. After an introduction to these different fields of application, this course unit aims to define the various concepts necessary for understanding both the mechanical and thermal properties of materials, limiting itself to bulk materials.

Hourly volumes:

            CM: 11 a.m.

            TD: 9 a.m.

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This course presents the concepts, fundamentals, and orders of magnitude of the physics and physical chemistry of interfaces that govern the mesoscopic scale of matter and ultimately determine the behavior and properties of everyday objects: soil, milk, cheese, paints, inks, cosmetics, adhesives, lubricants, etc., as well as numerous technological processes and biological cells and membranes.

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Knowing how to acquire and process data are essential skills in a scientific and/or technical professional context. The objective of this course is to address three types of standard skills in the professional environment:

· Advanced use of spreadsheets/graphing software (MS EXCEL, LO-CALC) for scientific and technical purposes

· Network interconnections: infrastructure, TCP/IP protocol suite, security

· Introduction to relational databases (MS ACCESS, LO-BASE) – concepts & vocabulary, creating queries, graphical reports, forms.

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One of the major issues related to the use of different materials in our daily lives is their durability and therefore their degradation. In this course, we will address issues related to the sustainability of materials (resources, reserves, criticality of materials, etc.) as well as methodologies for studying sustainability (types of surface/volume aging, temporal extrapolation, multi-scale, combination of effects, experimental representation, and industrial validation). This will then allow us to model the kinetics of aging using different models.

The different types of degradation affecting polymers will then be analyzed.

Finally, the aging of different types of materials will be illustrated by various concrete case studies (concrete, ceramics, metals, and elastomers).

Hours per week*: 11 hours CM:

                                    9 a.m. tutorial

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Polymer physics, to which this course provides an introduction, focuses on the physical properties of covalent chain assemblies, ranging from a few dozen to several million elementary molecules: polymers or macromolecules.

These synthetic or natural molecules can be observed in the solid state, liquid state, in solution, in a colloidal state, or confined to an interface.

Their very specific physical properties have led to the development of specific theoretical tools and the emergence of this new branch of physics with numerous applications.

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Bibliographic study on a research topic related to the course and potentially relevant to the M2 internship subject.

80 hours of independent work spread over the first semester of M2. Several project progress meetings will be scheduled with expert supervisors and scientific coordinators for the program.

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English tutorial course for students enrolled in the Master 2 Physics program who are seeking professional integration in English in a contemporary context.

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This module gives students the opportunity to discover the specifics of the world of work and prepare themselves to enter it in the best possible conditions, in particular through sharing experiences with professionals from the field. Students practice how to successfully apply for a job, using a methodical approach, optimizing their analysis of the job offer, writing a targeted resume and cover letter, and preparing for the job interview (role-playing, simulations).

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This course provides a general introduction to 1) the physics and mechanics of granular media and 2) their modeling using discrete methods (DEM). The multiscale nature of granular materials is discussed from the microscopic scale (contact interactions) to the macroscopic scale (structure scale). A phenomenological description of macroscopic behavior and microscopic properties is discussed for the static, quasi-static, and flow states of granular media. Micro-mechanical models and scale-changing approaches based on dimensionless analyses, averaged quantities, force transmissions, and the existence of anisotropies are introduced. The influence of particle properties and contact interactions on microstructure is also discussed. Discrete approaches (Discrete Element Methods (DEM)), regular approaches (Molecular Dynamics) and non-regular approaches (Contact Dynamics) are presented. In particular, the Contact Dynamics method will be implemented on simple examples using the LMGC90 calculation code.

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This module aims to teach the operating principles of the main techniques used to characterize the structure (in volume and on the surface) and properties (optical, electronic, etc.) of condensed matter:

• X-ray and electron diffraction techniques
• optical spectroscopy techniques (absorption, reflection, luminescence)
• local probe microscopy

  This module aims to teach the operating principles of the main techniques used to characterize the structure (in volume and on the surface) and properties (optical, electronic, etc.) of condensed matter:

  • X-ray and electron diffraction techniques
  • optical spectroscopy techniques (absorption, reflection, luminescence)
  • local probe microscopy

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This course provides an introduction to the field of complex fluids and active matter, with applications in both soft matter physics and chemistry and the physics of living organisms and biological objects.

It is common to both the PhyMV and SoftMat courses.

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Completion of a long-term research project (6 months) in an academic or industrial research laboratory.

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