(664d) Wrinkling as a Probe for the Characterization of Ultrathin Polymer Films

Instabilities in thin films and interfaces have been the subject of considerable scientific inquiry, both for understanding the physics of their formation and for application in patterning and organizing materials on the micro- to nano-scale. In this talk, we introduce a type of instability known as ?surface wrinkling' and highlight how it can be harnessed to characterize the mechanical and physical properties of thin-film materials systems?these measurements would be difficult or impossible using other techniques. In particular, we discuss in detail a new wrinkling-based approach to measure the relaxation dynamics and thermo-mechanical properties of thin and ultrathin glassy polymer films by probing the temporal decay of strain-induced wrinkling patterns back to their flat equilibrium state.