Webinar

Surface Analysis for Product Development: 30 Years of Solving Industrial Challenges

This lecture/presentation will briefly go through the basic principles for a set of surface techniques, how they differ in the information gained, and how you can combine them to get a deeper understanding of your system. Examples and case studies will be given both from academia, as well as from contract work performed at CR for our clients in industry. Main focus will be given to QCM-D and Ellipsometry, but other techniques such as AFM, contact angle, and SEM will also be mentioned.

Who should attend

This session is for anyone working with or interested in surface and interface characterization. It is relevant for users of QCM-D, ellipsometry, contact angle, and related surface analysis techniques, as well as those who want to understand how combining methods can help answer research, development, and application questions across a broad range of materials and industries.

Webinar details

Date and time
November 3, 2026
Time
9:00 - 10:00 AM CET
Presentation by
Tobias Halthur
Technologies
QCM-D

Key takeaways:

The basic principles of key surface analysis techniques and what type of information each method provides.
How combining techniques can provide deeper understanding of surfaces, materials, and interfaces.
How surface analysis is applied in real academic and industrial product-development challenges.

Presentation by Tobias Halthur

Tobias Halthur has a background in chemical engineering, followed by a PhD in surface and colloidal chemistry, both completed at KTH in Stockholm. His PhD research focused on building polypeptide multilayers on titanium surfaces to enhance and accelerate osseointegration for dental implants. QCM-D (an early prototype from Biolin) and in situ ellipsometry were the primary techniques used to monitor and characterize multilayer formation, as well as the integration and immobilization of proteins.

Following his PhD, Tobias worked on a short-term contract as a Senior Scientist in the Formulations Department at McNeil in Helsingborg, where he contributed to the development of Nicorette smoking cessation products. He then returned to academia for a postdoctoral position at Malmö University in the Biofilms Group, where he investigated the adsorption of biopolymers using QCM-D (E4), ellipsometry, and atomic force microscopy (AFM).

In 2009, Tobias joined CR Competence, a contract research and consultancy company based in Lund, Sweden. At CR, he has contributed to more than 200 projects across a wide range of industries, often focusing on surface-related processes. After a brief period as Chief Technology Officer at Prebona, Tobias rejoined CR in 2019 as Chief Scientific Officer. In this role, he is responsible for the scientific quality of contract research projects as well as educational activities and training.

Since 2014, Tobias has also been affiliated with Malmö University as an adjunct researcher and is currently co-supervising a PhD student.