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• Feb

  7

  Leroy Jia: Axisymmetric membranes with edges under external force: buckling, minimal surfaces, and tethers

  McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science

  4:00 PM

  EVENT DETAILS

  Title: Axisymmetric membranes with edges under external force: buckling, minimal surfaces, and tethers

  Speaker: Leroy Jia, Flatiron Research Fellow at Center for Computational Biology, Flatiron Institute

  Abstract: A timeless problem in the theory of fluid interfaces is to show that an area-minimizing soap film connecting two symmetric rings forms a catenoid. Inspired by the exotic phase transitions of colloidal membranes studied at the Sharma (IISc Bangalore) and Dogic (UCSB) Labs, we use theory and numerical computation to determine the shape of an axisymmetric fluid membrane with fixed area and bending resistance that is suspended in this classic geometry. This simple problem turns out to be surprisingly rich: various iconic shapes such as catenoids, thin tethers, and elastica-like buckled surfaces can appear as different limits of this system depending on the area and extension. A perturbation theory argument directly relates the tensions of catenoidal membranes to the stability properties of catenoidal soap films. We also investigate the effects of including a Gaussian curvature modulus, which, for small enough membranes, causes the axial force to diverge as the ring separation approaches its maximal value.

  **Please note, this event will be held online via Zoom at the following link: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/95506901758.

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  TIME Monday, February 7, 2022 at 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM

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  CONTACT Ted Shaeffer    ted.shaeffer@northwestern.edu EMAIL

  CALENDAR McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science

• Jan

  5

  Winter classes begin

  University Academic Calendar

  All Day

  EVENT DETAILS

  Winter classes begin

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  TIME Monday, January 5, 2026

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  CONTACT Office of the Registrar    nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL

  CALENDAR University Academic Calendar

• Jan

  15

  BME Student Development Series - Becca Greenstein, Northwestern

  McCormick - Biomedical Engineering Department (BME)

  4:00 PM M345, Technological Institute

  EVENT DETAILSmore info

  "Zotero Workshop"

  Abstract:

  In this session, BME grad students will receive a brief introduction to general library services and literature searching. After that, they will be introduced to Zotero, a reference management tool. Zotero can help researchers collect, organize, annotate, share, and cite research. Using a citation management tool saves researchers hours of time and lots of frustration. Participants are encouraged to bring a laptop so they can start using Zotero during the session.

  Bio:

  Becca Greenstein (she/they) is the STEM Librarian at Northwestern University Libraries and liaison to Mathematics, Statistics, Biological Sciences, and Biomedical Engineering, where she works with researchers at all levels finding, organizing, evaluating, and citing resources for their research and coursework. Outside of work, they enjoy rock climbing, baking, volunteering, biking, and spoiling their cat, Helix.

  Register Now

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  TIME Thursday, January 15, 2026 at 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM

  LOCATION M345, Technological Institute    map it

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  CONTACT BME Administration    bme-administrator@northwestern.edu EMAIL

  CALENDAR McCormick - Biomedical Engineering Department (BME)