Non-technical abstract: The vast majority of surfaces of any origin (biological, geological, synthetic) are not flat, smooth, and rigid but instead are generally curved, rough, and deformable, particularly for soft materials. Particle micro-structures formed on such curved surfaces through coating technologies can be used to control many of their interfacial material properties (optical, mechanical, thermal, porosity, etc.). However, particles pack differently on curved surfaces than flat surfaces, which can affect the resulting micro-structures and their ultimate properties in important applications such as two- and three- dimensional printing, optical coatings, flexible electronics, energy capture and storage, and membranes for chemical separations. This project will use optical microscopy and computer experiments to investigate how different shaped particles interact and move around on curved surfaces as part of assembling different surface microstructures with technologically useful properties. The intellectual merit of this project will result from new basic understanding of how different shaped particles assemble into a variety of micro-structures on various curved surface shapes (spherical, cylindrical, wavy). Broader impacts of this project will include educating a multidisciplinary workforce as well as outreach to pre-college level students through classroom and laboratory modules involving microscopy and computational research visuals. Technical abstract: T