Research

My research focuses on coupled transport phenomena in liquids, soft matter and membrane systems. I study how local processes such as diffusion, electromigration, concentration polarization and interfacial flows combine with geometry and confinement to produce macroscopic behavior and useful functions.

Current projects mainly focus on ion-exchange membranes, ionic transport and iontronic devices, while building on a broader background in soft matter, interfacial dynamics and microfluidics.

Membrane iontronics: memory and signal propagation

Ion-exchange membranes are usually viewed as passive selective barriers. We explore them instead as dynamic elements whose internal ionic distributions can store, transmit and process information.

This research axis investigates how concentration polarization, access resistance and internal current loops can generate complex electrical responses in simple membrane systems. We study membrane-based iontronic memristors, in which the conductance depends on the history of the applied signal, and we explore how ionic signals can propagate along membranes through coupled electrochemical transport.

The long-term goal is to build a nanofluidic toolbox for ion-based signal processing.

Ion transport in membranes for energy and separations

Ion-exchange membranes are key components in electrodialysis, reverse electrodialysis, desalination, osmotic energy conversion and electrochemical carbon-capture processes. Their performance is often described in terms of intrinsic membrane properties, but our work shows that the surrounding geometry and the organization of ionic fluxes can strongly shape the measured response.

Using millifluidic electrochemical cells, controlled apertures and 3D-printed devices, we study access resistance, finite-size effects and concentration polarization. This helps improve the interpretation of membrane measurements and provides new ways to control ion selectivity, energy conversion and dynamic ion separation.

Interfacial and confined transport in soft matter

My current work on ionic transport is rooted in a broader interest in interfacial and confined transport in soft matter. Previous projects addressed polymer multilayers at liquid interfaces, interfacial rheology, Marangoni flows, foam-film instabilities, foam coarsening and microfluidic capsule deformation.

Across these systems, the common question is how microscopic or interfacial processes couple to geometry, confinement and hydrodynamics to generate large-scale dynamics. This background provides the experimental tools and physical concepts used in my current work on membrane transport and iontronic systems.

Methods

Our work combines experiments, modeling and physical interpretation. We use microfluidic and millifluidic devices, 3D-printed electrochemical cells, controlled membrane geometries, electrical measurements, optical observations and soft-matter characterization techniques. Modeling relies on scaling arguments, semi-analytical descriptions and numerical approaches.

Opportunities

I regularly welcome students and collaborators interested in soft matter physics, physical chemistry, electrochemistry, microfluidics, membrane science and iontronic devices. Possible topics include ion-exchange membranes, iontronic memristors, signal propagation, internal current loops, electrodialysis, osmotic energy conversion, selective ion separation and interfacial transport.