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Profile
I did my PhD here in Cambridge in the 1980s on the statistical physics of polymeric materials. In subsequent years I developed theories of other soft materials including familiar domestic items such as mayonnaise and shampoo.
In 1995 I moved to the University of Edinburgh as Chair of Natural Philosophy (a term that in Scotland still means ‘Physics’), where I studied suspensions of small solid particles floating in a solvent. Corn-starch powder mixed with a little water makes such a suspension, and in 2014 I devised a theory for why dense corn-starch solutions solidify when you try to stir them too fast.
Teaching
Currently I teach a course in the Part III Mathematics Tripos called ‘Theoretical Physics of Soft Condensed Matter’.
Research
Since moving back to Cambridge in 2015, I have been increasingly interested in the statistical physics of particles that self-propel, such as swarms of interacting bacteria. There are many synthetic examples of these too, and all require a constant input of energy. This contrasts with previous uses of statistical physics to address atomic and molecular systems which reach equilibrium at some given temperature without energy inflow. The resulting ‘active matter’ systems show many interesting behaviours that we are currently trying to understand.
Selected Publications
‘Two-Dimensional Crystals far from Equilibrium’. L. Galliano, M. E. Cates and L. Berthier, Physical Review Letters 131, 017102 (2023)
‘Classical Nucleation Theory for Active Fluid Phase Separation’. M. E. Cates, C. Nardini, Physical Review Letters 130, 098203 (2023)
‘How far from Equilibrium is Active Matter?’ E. Fodor, C. Nardini, M. E. Cates, J. Tailleur, P. Visco and F. van Wijland, Physical Review Letters 117, 038103 (2016)
‘Motility-Induced Phase Separation.’ M. E. Cates and J. Tailleur, Annual Reviews in Condensed Matter Physics 6, 219-244 (2015)
‘Discontinuous Shear Thickening without Inertia in Dense Non-Brownian Suspensions.’ Physical Review Letters 112, 098302 (2014)
‘Statistical Mechanics of Interacting Run-and-Tumble Bacteria’, Physical Review Letters 100, 218103 (2008)
‘Colloidal Jamming at Interfaces: A Route to Fluid-Bicontinuous Gels.’ K. Stratford, R. Adhikari, I. Pagonabarraga, J.C. Desplat and M. E. Cates, Science 309, 2198 (2005)
‘Rheology of Soft Glassy Materials’. P. Sollich, F. Lequeux, P. Hebraud and M. E. Cates, Physical Review Letters 78, 2020 (1997)
Public Engagements
Bullet-Proof Custard: Fluids that stop flowing when you push them too hard (A public lecture at the Perimeter Institute in Canada)