Related papers: Two-phase stretching of molecular chains
We propose a continuum theory to model the Mullins effect, which is ubiquitously observed in polymer composites. In the theory, the softening of the materials during the stretching process is accounted for by considering the delamination of…
Joint ground states of two directed polymers in a random medium are investigated. Using exact min-cost flow optimization the true two-line ground-state is compared with the single line ground state plus its first excited state. It is found…
We study the static properties of a semiflexible polymer exposed to a quenched random environment by means of computer simulations. The polymer is modeled as two-dimensional Heisenberg chain. For the random environment we consider hard…
We revisit the classical problem of a polymer confined in a slit in both of its static and dynamic aspects. We confirm a number of well known scaling predictions and analyse their range of validity by means of comprehensive Molecular…
We study theoretically the unzipping of a double stranded DNA from a condensed globule state by an external force. At constant force, we find that the double stranded DNA unzips an at critical force Fc and the number of unzipped monomers M…
We study the swelling of a flexible linear chain composed of active particles by analytical theory and computer simulation. Three different situations are considered: a free chain, a chain confined to an external harmonic trap, and a chain…
DNA supercoiling is central to many fundamental processes of living organisms. Its average level along the chromosome and over time reflects the dynamic equilibrium of opposite activities of topoisomerases, which are required to relax…
The stretching response of polymer chains fundamentally determines the mechanical properties of polymer networks. In this Letter, we develop a statistical mechanics model that incorporates both bond stretching and bond angle deformation,…
We study a model describing the force-extension curves of modular proteins, nucleic acids, and other biomolecules made out of several single units or modules. At a mesoscopic level of description, the configuration of the system is given by…
Taking into account the nonequivalence of fixed-force and fixed-length ensembles in the weak-force regime, equations of state are derived that describe the equilibrium extension or compression of an ideal Gaussian polymer chain in response…
Using a coarse-grained bead-spring model for semi-flexible macromolecules forming a polymer brush, structure and dynamics of the polymers is investigated, varying chain stiffness and grafting density. The anchoring condition for the grafted…
We study the influence of some quenched disorder in the sequence of monomers on the entropic elasticity of long polymeric chains. Starting from the Kratky-Porod model, we show numerically that some randomness in the favoured angles between…
Recent experimental observations of anisotropic conductivity in stretched polymer electrolytes films of the polyethylene oxide family are discussed. The main experimental observations, enhancement of the ionic diffusion and conductivity in…
A three dimensional mesoscopic model is applied to study the properties of short DNA chains in a confining environment. The cylindrical channel is represented by a hard-wall repulsive potential incorporated in the system Hamiltonian. The…
Multiple polymer networks, such as double-network elastomers comprising a sacrificial and a matrix network, exhibit exceptional mechanical resilience, commonly attributed to the formation of an extended damage zone before a crack can grow.…
We investigate diffusion-limited reactions between a diffusing particle and a target site on a semiflexible polymer, a key factor determining the kinetics of DNA-protein binding and polymerization of cytoskeletal filaments. Our theory…
The interaction of polymers with small-scale velocity gradients can trigger a coil-stretch transition in the polymers. We analyze this transition within a direct numerical simulation of shear turbulence with an Oldroyd-B model for the…
The structural properties of a linear polymer and its evolution in time have a strong bearing on its anisotropic stress response. The mean-square bond length and mean bond angle are the critical parameters that influence the time-varying…
While the behavior of double stranded DNA at mesoscopic scales is fairly well understood, less is known about its relation to the rich mechanical properties in the base-pair scale, which is crucial, for instance, to understand DNA-protein…
As a key molecule of Life, Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is the focus of numbers of investigations with the help of biological, chemical and physical techniques. From a physical point of view, both experimental and theoretical works have…