CARLES BLANCH MERCADER

Trained as a theoretical physicist, I apply concepts from non-equilibrium thermodynamics and pattern formation to better understand living systems. Recently, I joined the team of Pierre Sens as a CNRS chargé de recherche to investigate how the interplay between active processes and topological defects in liquid crystals can generate morphologies in soft materials. Understanding this mechanism can help us to gain insights on the morphogenesis of biological tissues, as well as open new ways to design shape-morphing materials.