Davide Hill

Areas of Interest

Professor Hill’s research focuses on the physics of polymers and liquid crystals, with emphasis on microstructure and rheology. The study of elasticity-induced, particle-particle interactions in liquid crystalline media offers fertile grounds for new discoveries on fundamental and technological importance.

Successful utilization of newly synthesized liquid crystal polymers (LCPs) hinges on careful control of molecular orientation within the material. Molecular orientation at solid boundaries can be influenced by particular surface treatments.

Collaborations with other faculty include computer simulations to elucidate the microscopic behavior of polymer chains in the melt and solutions under electric fields (with E. Maginn), as well as the study of concentrated suspensions of particles in viscoelastic liquids (with D.T. Leighton).