Soft matter is a field of condensed matter physics that began to develop in France in the 1970s under the impulse of Pierre-Gilles de Gennes. I had the chance to participate in this adventure, and I describe in this article some of the memorable events. Soft matter is not only linked to physics but also to chemistry and biology, and working in this multidisciplinary field is quite stimulating. My particular expertise deals with liquid surfaces, an area that considerably expanded with the advent of miniaturization, i.e., when surfaces begin to matter. I was able to benefit from the French and European network systems, as well as from many interactions with young students and industrial partners. I show how these favorable conditions contributed to successes in my research.

中文翻译：

---

进入软物质世界的冒险


软物质是凝聚态物理学的一个领域，在 Pierre-Gilles de Gennes 的推动下，于 1970 年代在法国开始发展。我有机会参加了这次冒险，我在本文中描述了一些令人难忘的事件。软物质不仅与物理学有关，还与化学和生物学有关，在这个多学科领域工作非常令人兴奋。我特别擅长液体表面，随着小型化的出现，即当表面开始变得重要时，这个领域大大扩展了。我能够从法国和欧洲的网络系统中受益，以及与年轻学生和行业合作伙伴的许多互动。我展示了这些有利条件如何为我的研究成功做出贡献。